V  "^  ^  X  i 


O  PRINCETON,     N.    J.  <f> 


PRINCETON,    N.    J. 

Y:':^--'i     BV  4253  .R6  1880a  ^Yili^^ 

Robinson,  Charles  S.  (^ 

-  JA  Studies  in  the  New  Testamen 

•s^/J-_,....,_._^-   ..__ 


STUDIES 


IN  THE 


New  Testament 


BY 

CHAS.   S.   ROBINSON    D.D. 

Pastor  cf  the  Memorial  Church   New  York  City 


Aniericaii   Tract  Society^ 

150   NASSAU  ST.,  NEW  YORK. 


Copyright  by 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S   SONS. 

iS8o. 


PREFACE. 

These  studies  In  the  New  Testament  were  not  de- 
signed for  pulpit  discourses,  although  some  of  them 
may  seem  like  sermons.  They  were  prepared  as 
articles  for  a  rehgious  newspaper,  in  connection  with 
the  series  of  International  Lessons. 

The  author  does  not  care  to  change  the  pieces  from 
their  colloquial  form,  lest  they  should  appear  un- 
familiar to  those  who  have  expressed  the  wish  to 
have  them  in  a  volume. 

JvIp:morial  Church, 

New  York,  February  15,  1880. 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

I.— Peace  with  God. i 

Romans  5  :  i, 

II.— Thb  Security  of  Believers 14 

Romans  8 :  28. 

III.— Christian  Love 25 

■*  Corinthians  13:  13. 

IV.— Victory  over  Death.      ...••«,         ^7 

1  Corinthians  15 :  54. 

v.— An  Ordained  Ministry.      .        .        .        •       ...      48 

2  Corinthians  5  :  20. 

VI.— The  Christian  Armor 61 

Ephesians  6:  11. 

VII.— The  Mind  of  Christ.  .       .        •       »       »       »       -      7Z 

Phihppians  2 :  5. 

VIII.— Piety  Tested  at  Home.  84 

Colossians  3 :  23. 

IX.— The  Coming  of  the  Lord 95 

I  Thessalonians  4  :  15. 

X.— The  Christian  in  the  World 107 

I  Timothy  6  :  6,  7. 

XI  —The  Christian  Citizen 119 

Titus  3  :  I,  2. 

XII.— Shadow  and  Substance 130 

Colossians  2  :  17. 

XIII.— Saving  Faith 143 

Hebrews  11  :  i. 

XIV.— Pure  Religion. 158 

James  i  :  27. 


vi  CONTENTS. 


PAGE 

XV.— Faith  Working  by  Love 169 

Galatians  5  :  6. 

XVI.— The  Sweat  of  Blood.  ..;...        180 

Luke  22  :  44. 

XVIL— Sin.  Cleansed  by  Blood 193 

I  John  1 :  7. 

XVIIL— Love  as  a  Force. 203 

1  John  4 :  19. 

XIX.— Alpha  and  Omega 214 

Revelation  i  :  8. 

XX.— The  Message  to  the  Churches.      ....       224 
Revelation  3  :  6. 

XXI.— The  Fevv^  in  Sardis 234 

Revelation  3 :  4. 

XXIL— The  Lion  of  Judah 249 

Revelation  5 :  5. 

XXIII.— The  Singing  Legions  of  God 261 

Revelation  5 :  9,  10. 

XXIV.— The  Heavenly  City 271 

Revelation  21 :  2. 

XXV.— The  Final  Prayer 283 

Revelation  22  :  20. 

XXVI.— The  Teacher  Taught 294 

Romans  2 :  21. 

XXVII.— Four  Pillars  of  the  Church 307 

Galatians  2 :  g. 


STUDIES  IN  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT 


STUDIES   IN 

THE    NEW  TESTAMENT. 


I. 

PEACE  WITH   GOD. 


Therefore  being  justified  by  faith,  we  have  peace  with  God 
THROUGH  OUR  LoRD  Jesus  CuRiST.—I^omans  5  : 1. 

We  live  in  one  great  world  of  trouble.  It  is  proba- 
ble that  such  a  remark  has  been  made  before.  People 
hardly  imagine  any  one  has  said  an  original  thing  when 
he  has  repeated  it.  But  in  most  cases  they  would  fol- 
low it  up  with  some  other  remarks,  about  themselves  or 
their  families  or  their  neighbors,  in  which  a  plausible 
theory  might  be  set  forth  as  to  the  ways  in  which  the 
trouble  has  been  actually  brought  on  ;  that  is,  as  they 
look  at  the  subject. 

There  is  no  need  of  any  differences  among  thinkers 
on  this  point ;  for  the  unerring  word  of  .  inspiration 
plainly  says  that  the  disturbing  force  is  s/n.  All  the 
world's  confusions,  perplexities,  and  sorrows  grow  up, 
in  one  way  or  another,  out  of  men's  transgressions  and 
defiant  disregard  of  law. 


M' 


PEACE  WITH   GOD. 


Sin  makes  trouble.  Sicilian  shadows. 

Yet  not  everybody  chooses  to  admit  that.  Certain 
duties  to  be  performed,  certain  pressures  of  conscience 
giving  pain,  are  likely  to  be  offered  in  the  discussion, 
if  we  urge  into  much  conspicuousness  the  relations 
between  the  human  will  and  the  divine.  It  will  be 
asserted  that  traditions  of  anger  in  the  Supreme  Being, 
some  report  of  possible  threats  early  made,  coupled 
with  an  industrious  reiteration  of  foreboding  by  a  few 
credulous  alarmists,  have  done  most  of  the  mischief. 
It  would  soon  quiet  down,  if  men  and  wom^en  would 
just  take  comfort  in  what  is  given  them  and  let  pre- 
sages alone. 

Tourists  say  that  across  the  fair  plains  of  Sicily,  with 
the  rising  of  every  new  dawn,  stretches  one  deep  line 
of  darkness,  drawn  by  the  pyramidal  form  of  Mount 
Etna.  It  is  the  unvarying  reminder  of  the  ruin  that 
may  at  any  hour  fall  heavily  from  the  volcano's  crater. 
And  yet  the  inhabitants  forbid  you  to  speak  of  that 
giant  phantom  which  lies  sleeping  upon  their  gardens 
and  meadows  through  all  those  smiling  villages.  They 
do  not  altogether  admit,  in  so  many  words,  that  any 
one  hopes  to  keep  the  lava  from  bursting  or  burning, 
by  turning  toward  the  m.ountain  the  cold  shoulder  of 
blank  indifference ;  but  they  do  assert,  most  strenuously, 
that  conversation  about  the  matter  is  not  going  to  bet- 
ter the  case,  and  only  renders  people  more  uncomforta- 
ble all  around.  It  is  true  always  there,  that  the  brighter 
is  the  day,  the  plainer  is  the  outline  of  shadow ;  and 
hence  every  joy  they  possess  exhibits  the  more  surely 


PEACE   WITH   GOD. 


The  troubled  sea.  Antagonism. 

the  precursor  of  sorrow  and  peril.  But  good-breeding 
is  invoked  to  check  passing  remarks  which  in  timid  per- 
sons might  force  a  shudder,  or  possibly  drive  a  melan- 
choly mind  into  fear. 

Thus  we  live  under  the  immediate  shadow  of  divine 
wrath.  The  gloomy  projection  lies  across  the  land. 
Men  choose  to  think  that  there  is  nothing  but  incivil- 
ity in  a  reminder  of  the  coming  day  of  final  judgment. 
It  jars  on  delicate  nerves.  Still,  it  is  better  to  believe 
that  a  few  desire  to  be  intelligent.  What  is  it  that  breaks 
up  the  peace  in  this  world  ?  What  will  bring  tranquil- 
lity and  rest  ? 

**  There  is  no  peace,  saith  my  God,  to  the  wicked.  I 
create  the  fruit  of  the  lips — peace,  peace  to  him  that  is 
far  off,  and  to  him  that  is  near,  saith  the  Lord,  and  I 
will  heal  him.  But  the  wicked  are  like  the  troubled 
sea,  when  it  cannot  rest,  whose  waters  cast  up  mire  and 
dirt." 

Can  any  one  be  mistaken  ?  In  all  this  familiar  pas- 
sage it  is  made  evident  that  the  w^orry  and  unrest  of  the 
human  soul  depend  simply  upon  its  moral  state.  If  it 
is  in  antagonism  with  God,  then  a  deep-seated  source  of 
irritation  and  uneasiness  is  lodged  in  the  centre  of  its 
being.  No  quiet  can  possibly  be  found  until  that  soul 
comes  to  be  at  one  with  God,  and  adjusts  all  its  pur- 
poses to  meet  his  declared  will.  **  The  fruit  of  right- 
eousness is  sown  in  peace  of  them  that  make  peace." 
Hence,  the  words  of  that  fine  verse  in  Isaiah's  prophecy  : 
"The  work  of  righteousness  shall  be  peace;  and  the 


PEACE   WITH   GOD. 


Justification.  A  legal  term. 

effect  of  righteousness,  quietness  and  assurance  forever  ; 
and  my  people  shall  dwell  in  a  peaceable  habitation,  and 
in  sure  dwellings,  and  in  quiet  resting-places." 

The  question  all  turns,  therefore,  upon  the  possession 
of  what  in  the  New  Testament  is  termed  justification — 
the  same  thing  as  what  is  also  called  righteoustiess : 
**  Therefore  being  justified  by  faith,  we  have  peace  with 
God,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ :  by  whom  also  we 
have  access  by  faith  into  this  grace  wherein  we  stand, 
and  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of  God." 

It  becomes  us  in  the  outset  to  understand  that  right- 
eousness is  a  purely  individual  acquisition.  The  gospel 
deals  with  human  beings  one  by  one.  A  nation  is  to  be 
converted  in  no  other  sense  than  in  the  conversion  of 
the  men,  w^omen,  and  children  that  compose  it.  And  in 
all  our  pictures  of  the  world  in  pain,  it  is  never  to  be 
forgotten  that  the  source  of  annoyance  is  in  the  sinful- 
ness of  a  heart,  not  of  a  community  or  a  corporation. 
Whenever  any  one  person  yields  his  love  to  Christ,  he 
does  in  that  way  more  than  he  can  do  in  any  other  way 
to  relieve  the  world  of  confusion.  For,  in  so  far  as  his 
influence  is  to  be  reckoned  at  all,  his  measure  of  right- 
eousness brings  a  measure  of  peace.   , 

What,  then,  is  this  *' justification  by  faith,"  about 
which  so  much  is  said  ?  In  a  mere  theological  form  of 
reply  perhaps  no  good  will  be  found,  but  statements  like 
these  need  to  be  accurate.  The  term  is  entirely  legal. 
A  sinner  is  conceived  as  condemned  at  the  bar  of  God's 
justice  ;  the  punishment  for  his  sins  is   death.      Now 


PEACE  WITH   GOD. 


The  surety.  Paul's  picture. 

Jesus  Christ,  as  a  redeemer  and  surety,  comes  and  as- 
sumes the  sinner's  exposures  and  liabilities.  In  effect, 
he  stands  in  the  sinner's  place. 

This  is  the  picture  so  often  presented  by  the  apostle 
Paul  in  more  than  one  of  his  remarkable  chapters  ;  he 
appears  never  to  be  tired  of  it.  Vividly  seeming  to  see 
the  crucifixion  scene,  that  in  which  Jesus  on  the  cross  is 
the  central  figure,  he  explains  its  mystery  by  declaring 
that  this  perfectly  holy  being  was  suffering  not  for  any 
sins  of  his  own,  but  for  the  sins  of  another.  Jesus  w^as 
making  an  atonement  for  men.  Hence,  a  substitution 
was  effected  for  all  that  would  accept  him  by  faith.  It 
is  the  mere  plainness  of  this  action  which  renders  Paul's 
language  so  dramatic  and  picturesque.  He  can  behold 
nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  Redeemer  bearing  men's 
guilt,  and  giving  them  his  merit.  So  his  descriptions 
swell  with  strong  feeling,  and  fairly  tremble  v/ith  grate- 
ful acknowledgment. 

**  For  when  we  were  yet  without  strength,  in  due  time 
Christ  died  for  the  ungodly.  For  scarcely  for  a  right- 
eous man  will  one  die  :  yet  peradventure  for  a  good  man 
some  would  even  dare  to  die.  But  God  commendeth 
his  love  toward  us,  in  that,  while  we  were  yet  sinners, 
Christ  died  for  us." 

Peace  comes,  therefore,  when  purity  has  come  before- 
hand. '^  First  pure,  then  peaceable."  Saved  souls  are 
pardoned  for  Christ's  sake  ;  God  thereafter  looks  upon 
them  as  if  they  never  had  sinned.  So  the  old  standard 
formulates   the   doctrine  :    "  Justification  is   an   act   of 


PEACE   WITH   GOD. 


"  First  pure."  Martin  Luther. 

God's  free  grace,  wherein  he  pardoneth  all  our  sins,  and 
accepteth  us  as  righteous  in  his  sight,  only  for  the  right- 
eousness of  Christ  imputed  to  us,  and  received  by  faith 
alone."  It  is  designed  in  these  quoted  verses  to  teach 
that  just  so  long  as  any  man  is  an  unpardoned  sinner, 
he  Vv^ill  be  disturbed  and  in  trouble  ;  he  cannot  rest. 
But  the  moment  he  is  justified  by  faith,  and  is  forgiven 
in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  he  is  at  peace.  His  na- 
ture is  restored,  his  state  of  condemnation  is  changed. 
The  earliest  fruit  and  effect  of  his  new  righteousness  is 
quietness  and  assurance  forever. 

The  story  is  told  of  Martin  Luther,  whose  hours  of 
guilt  and  conviction  were  so  filled  with  wild  and  fearful 
dreams,  that  once  the  evil  one,  Satan,  appeared  to  enter 
his  room,  and  with  an  air  of  insolent  triumph  displayed 
a  vast  roll  of  parchment,  which  he  carried  in  his  arms. 
Luther  asked  him  what  that  was  ;  and  received  the 
alarming  reply  :  ''  It  is  a  catalogue  of  all  your  former 
sins  ! " 

He  leaped  from  his  bed  in  an  impulse  of  mortal  agony 
and  terror.  With  a  hollow  burst  of  derisive  laughter 
the  fiend  threw  it  on  the  floor,  still  holding  one  end  in 
his  hand  so  that  it  might  easily  unroll  its  awful  length. 
There  the  frightened  man  was  compelled  to  rea,d,  hour 
after  hour,  the  terrible  list  of  all  the  wicked  deeds  he 
had  done  in  all  his  life.  There  were  the  offenses  and 
follies  of  his  youth.  There  were  the  transgressions  of 
his  riper  years.  He  groaned  in  the  bitterness  of  his 
soul,  as  he  discovered,  every  now  and  then,  some  miser- 


PEACE   WITH   GOD. 


Lists  of  sins.  The  devil's  perversion. 

able  little  vileness,  or  some  daring  act  of  impiety,  which 
he  had  almost  forgotten,  but  here  instantly  recognized  ; 
some  unseen,  undisclosed,  secret  transgression  he  had 
vainly  imagined  no  one  had  detected,  or  even  conceived 
he  could  commit. 

There  they  all  were  ;  and,  oh,  how  black  the  ink 
seemed,  and  how  imperishable  the  parchment  seemed, 
and  how  long  the  great  roll  seemed,  and  how  tightly 
the  overjoyed  devil  in  his  fiery  glee  held  it  clenched 
in  his  fingers !  There  the  sins  were  ;  just  as  he  knew 
now  some  pen  of  a  recording  angel  had  noted  them 
down  ;  just  as  he  knew,  beyond  a  doubt  now,  that  God 
would  one  time  set  them  before  him  in  array  under 
the  light  of  his  countenance.  And  his  heart  failed 
him  as  he  gazed.  He  bent  his  head  hopelessly  in  sor- 
row and  shame,  with  a  fearful  foreboding  of  the  wrath 
to  come. 

Suddenly  the  devil  called  him  by  name,  and  pointed 
to  some  words  along  the  top  of  the  roll  just  where  his 
hand  held  it.  Luther  looked  up  and  read  aloud  :  ^^  All 
sin ;  "  and  then  he  understood  that  no  one  of  the  many 
acts,  or  even  thoughts,  was  to  be  left  out.  His  form 
began  to  shiver,  and  he  says  he  was  seized  with  a  vio- 
lent fit  of  trembling.  Hell  appeared  opening  at  once 
under  his  feet.  His  agony  was  intense.  He  could 
not  bear  to  look  at  the  roll.  But  Satan  kept  scream- 
ing, "All  sin!  all  sin!"  And  at  last,  in  order  to 
afflict  him  the  more,  exclaimed,  *'So  says  God,  so 
says  God,  all  sin,  all  sin!" 


PEACE  WITH   GOD. 


"All  sin."  No  more  fear. 

Now  the  man's  study  of  Scripture  stood  him  in  ex- 
cellent stead.  For  he  looked  up  defiantly,  saying, 
"Where  speaks  God  that  word?"  And  he  sprang 
from  his  couch,  a  new  thought  in  his  mind.  "In 
what  chapter,  and  what  verse  ?  Where  says  God 
that  ? "  he  thundered  with  clear  voice  like  a  trumpet 
of  challenge.  "There,  there!"  answered  the  devil, 
pointing  again  to  the  parchment,  and  putting  his 
fiery  finger  on  the  two  words,  "all  sin,  all  sin."  The 
reformer,  brave  for  a  moment  with  a  blessed  thought 
in  his  heart,  snatched  the  awful  list  away  from  his 
enemy,  and  unrolling  it  one  turn  more,  in  the  other 
direction,  discovered,  as  he  hoped  he  would,  the  re- 
mainder of  the  inscription.  There  it  explained  itself ; 
to  be  sure,  Satan  had  quoted  correctly,  for  he  read, 
"all  sin,  all  sin."  But  right  above  these  were  the 
other  words,  as  in  the  Bible :  "  The  blood  of  Jesus 
Christ,  his  Son,  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin ! "  So  he 
learned  that  all  that  his  sins  had  been  massed  to- 
gether upon  that  roll  for,  was  in  order  to  announce 
that  atonement  had  been  made  completely  to  cover 
them.  And  with  a  glad  cry  of  exultant  joy  he  awoke, 
while  the  devil  disappeared  with  aH  his  parchment 
of  sorrow  and  woe. 

It  is  when  a  man  knows  his  sins  are  all  in  the  bur- 
den Jesus  bore  on  the  Calvary  cross,  that  he  has  no 
longer  any  fear  about  them.  The  work  of  righteous- 
ness is  peace,  and  the  effect  of  righteousness  is  quiet- 
ness and  assurance   forever.     Being  justified  by  faith, 


PEACE   WITH   GOD.  g 

Conquered  peace.  Espousal  to  Christ. 

he  has  peace.  And  now  he  settles  down,  like  a  re- 
turned prodigal,  just  to  learn  how  he  can  do  most  to 
please  his  Father.  He  begins  to  understand  his  own 
devious  history.  He  sees  a  new  meaning  to  his  life. 
He  recognizes  the  fact  that  God  is  wiser  than  he 
supposed.  For  while  this  hard  will  of  his  has  been 
wandering  foolishly  around  after  rest,  the  gentleness 
above  has  been  guiding  him  into  greatness  in  despite 
of  himself.  All  peace  in  this  world  is  a  conquered 
peace.  Now  we,  who  have  been  in  warfare,  see  that 
in  fighting  others  we  have  been  triumphing  over  our- 
selves ;  when  we  attempted  to  subdue  Satan,  we  at 
least  brought  home  a  subdued  spirit  of  our  own. 
We  are  sure  that  the  past  is  altogether  safe,  and  the 
future  will  be  secure,  for  God  is  leading  us  all  the 
way. 

*' And  not  only  so,  but  we  glory  in  tribulations  also  ; 
knowing  that  tribulation  worketh  patience ;  and  pa- 
tience, experience  ;  and  experience,  hope  ;  and  hope 
maketh  not  ashamed ;  because  the  love  of  God  is 
shed  abroad  in  our  hearts,  by  the  Holy  Ghost  which 
is  given  unto  us." 

It  is  not  possible  to  put  into  forms  of  colloquial 
speech  the  sources  of  enjoyment  which  a  pardoned 
believer  knows  when  he  is  once  possessed  of  the 
peace  which  passes  understanding ;  the  soul  like  a 
bride  rests  in  a  love  it  cannot  explain,  when  the 
sweet  day  of  espousal  to  Christ  has  been  reached. 
The    Christian    cannot    be    alone,    for    a   happy   con- 


lO  PEACE  WITH   GOD. 

The  soul's  Sabbath.  Richard  Baxter. 

science,  like  a  bird  in  his  heart,  keeps  singing  cheer- 
ily to  give  him  company.  He  has  no  alarms,  no  sus- 
picions. .Nothing  breaks  up  the  calm,  bright  serenity 
of  his  trustful  repose  in  Christ  Jesus.  *'Thou  wilt 
keep  him  in  perfect  peace,  whose  mind  is  stayed  on 
thee;  because  he  trusteth  in  thee."  Such  an  one  has 
reached  the  final  tranquillity  of  the  soul. 

"  Far,  far  beneath — the  noise  of  tempest  dieth. 
And  silver  waves  chime  ever  peacefully; 
And  no  rude  storm,  how  fierce  soe'er  it  flieth, 
Disturbs  the  Sabbath  of  that  deeper  sea." 

Nor  is  this  all :  peace  brings  prosperity.  God  opens 
the  door  of  his  treasury  of  promise  to  the  souls  he  has 
welcomed  into  the  palace.  He  loves  his  Son,  and  they 
are  his  Son's  friends.  The  moment  we  are  certain  of 
a  Saviour's  love,  all  inferior  considerations  vanish.  If 
our  feet  are  upon  the  Rock  of  Ages  it  does  not  mat- 
ter at  all  where  the  danger  threatens.  Mourning,  de- 
sertion, disappointment,  poverty,  sickness  —  nothing 
can  bear  us  away  before  it.  We  do  not  even  fear  the 
king  of  terrors,  nor  shrink  from  the  rack  of  nature 
as  he  draws  near.  **  I  have  pain,"  said  Richard  Bax- 
ter, on  his  dying  bed,  *'  I  have  pain ;  there  is  no 
arguing  against  sense  ;  but  then,  I  have  peace,  great 
peace!''  To  any  true  believer,  there  is  no  shock  in 
the  appearance  of  that  messenger  who  announces  his 
departure.  He  seems  to  himself  even  now  sitting  in 
the  antechamber  of  the  palace,  waiting ;  and  death  is 


TEACE   WITH   GOD.  II 

The  antlJote.  A  criminal. 

only  the  black-dressed  sei*vant  who  comes  out  to  say 
the  king  is  ready  to  see  him  in  the  throne-room. 

Now  surely  it  is  worth  something,  in  a  world  like 
this,  to  find  one  antidote  for  wakefulness  and  unrest. 
This  is  the  peace  which  the  world  can  neither  give 
nor  take  away.  Once  we  are  forgiven,  our  hearts 
are  in  perfect  content.  Our  natures  have  reached 
their  full  satisfaction  in  God.  Thus  we  reason  :  God 
has  redeemed  us  ;  he  had  his  purpose  in  it ;  he  gave 
his  Son  to  suffering  and  shame ;  therein  we  rest ; 
**much  more  then,  being  now  justified  by  his  blood, 
w^e  shall  be  saved  from  wrath  through  him ;  for  if 
when  we  were  enemies,  we  were  reconciled  to  God 
by  the  death  of  his  Son,  much  more,  being  reconciled, 
we  shall  be  saved  by  his  life." 

Each  Christian  receives  a  testimony  in  his  soul  which 
settles  all  his  fears  for  the  future.  He  has  put  his  case 
out  of  his  own  hands  ;  he  cannot  even  ruin  it  by  his  own 
folly  of  mismanagement ;  he  has  an  advocate  at  last  with 
the  Father  whom  he  can  trust  implicitly,  even  Jesus 
Christ  the  righteous.  So  he  waits  tranquilly  for  the 
judgment,  knowing  he  is  prepared  for  it,  and  shall  stand 
clear  in  the  end. 

Years  ago,  I  somewhere  read  of  a  criminal  on  trial  for 
capital  misdemeanor.  The  evidence  proved  most  over- 
whelmingly against  him.  The  law  was  explicit.  There 
seemed  no  avenue  of  escape.  The  people  grew  anxious 
in  his  behalf,  as  the  verdict  of  condemnation  inevitably 
drew  nearer.     Yet  all  the  while  this  prisoner  at  the  bar 


12  PEACE  WITH   GOD. 

Pardon  in  possession.  Safe  because  "  lost." 

kept  inexplicably  calm.  His  eye  never  once  quailed, 
although  the  most  damaging  facts  continually  came  to 
light.  At  last  the  jury  returned,  and  the  fatal  decision 
was  rendered  ;  and  all  that  the  culprit  did  was  to  draw 
a  long  sigh  of  unmistakable  relief.  The  bystanders 
marvelled  at  his  self-control,  and  grew  curious  over  the 
secret  of  his  serenity  ;  and  especially  when  they  ima- 
gined they  detected  in  his  unembarrassed  demeanor  a 
strange  sort  of  triumph. 

By  and  by,  when  the  sentence  of  death  was  pro- 
nounced, he  arose  in  his  place,  and  laid  before  his 
judges  a  full  pardon  for  the  crime  of  which  he  had  been 
just  now  convicted — a  pardon  which  all  along  he  had 
held  hidden  in  his  bosom.  They  examined  the  roll  with 
eager  scrutiny,  and  found  that  it  really  was  his  discharge. 
It  left  no  further  question.  It  had  indeed  been  signed 
by  the  hand  of  their  generous  sovereign,  and  sealed  with 
the  grand  signet  of  the  realm.  There  remained  no  more 
to  be  done.  And  amid  the  shouts  of  the  people  the  man 
went  immediately  forth  free.  The  law's  demands  were 
cancelled. 

Now,  does  it  need  to  be  asked  what  was  the  secret  of 
this  quiet  assurance  ?  He  had  looked  on  Jiimself  as  con- 
victed from  the  very  commencement  of  the  trial,  and  in 
that  fixed  expectation  found  his  entire  comfort.  Every 
item  of  testimony  which  pointed  toward  his  possible  ex- 
culpation was  really  just  so  much  in  his  way,  and  always 
caused  him  anxiety.  For  he  knew  he  was  guilty,  and 
he  could  not  use  a  pardon  unless  he  was  condemned. 


PEACE  WITH   GOD.  1 3 

Robert  Browning.  The  Talmud. 

Hence,  with  each  step  in  the  evidence  that  pressed 
heaviest,  his  joyous  hopes  rose.  He  was  nearing  deliv- 
erance.    He  could  say  :  **  I  am  safe,  because  I  am  lost !  " 

Fine  illustration  is  this  throughout  of  a  true  Christian's 
ineffable  peace.  He  owns  himself  the  very  culprit  he  is 
at  the  bar  of  divine  justice.  To  clear  him  would  be  to 
deprive  him  of  all  interest  in  the  atonement,  and  shut 
him  away  out  of  Christ ;  for  Christ  came  not  to  save 
righteous  people,  but  sinners.  He  knows,  therefore, 
that  he  cannot  be  pardoned  unless  he  is  first  found 
guilty.  And  the  moment  he  is  condemned,  he  takes  his 
pardon  out  of  his  bosom  and  stands  free  in  the  grace  of 
God.  Being  justified  by  faith,  he  has  peace  with  God, 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

There  is  no  other  way  of  relief  than  this.  The  trouble 
in  the  world  is  met  by  the  gospel  of  peace.  Hence  the 
force  of  Robert  Browning's  couplet  : 

*•  He  who  first  made  us  see  the  chains  we  wore. 
He  also  strikes  the  blow  that  shatters  them," 

And  that  gospel  admits  of  no  improvement,  however 
fair  and  promising.  The  old  fable  of  the  Talmud  is  a 
parable.  There  was  a  flute  in  the  Temple,  preserved 
from  the  days  of  Moses.  It  was  smooth,  thin,  and 
formed  of  a  reed.  At  the  command  of  the  king,  it  was 
overlaid  with  precious  gold.  And  thus  its  sweetness 
was  ruined  till  the  gold  was  taken  away. 


II. 

THE   SECURITY  OF  BELIEVERS. 

And  we  know  that  all  things  work  together  for  good  to 
them  that  love  god,  to  them  who  are  the  called  accord- 
ING TO  HIS  PURPOSE.— A'omans  8  :  28. 

In  a  life  like  this,  where  nobody  seems  able  to  do 
more  than  conjecture  and  surmise,  suppose,  imagine, 
and  speculate,  it  is  a  comfort  to  find  even  one  man  who 
can  honestly  declare  he  knows  to  a  certainty  that  what 
he  says  is  true.  And  indeed,  it  is  still  more  remarkable, 
and  still  more  comforting  withal,  to  find  that  what  he 
knows  is  that  exactly  which  we  have  had  most  doubt 
about.  Hence  no  words  in  the  New  Testament  come 
to  us  with  more  welcome  or  more  wonder  than  these  : 
*'  And  we  know  that  all  things  work  together  for  good 
to  them  that  love  God,  to  them  who  are  the  called  ac- 
cording to  his  purpose." 

Without  doubt,  the  apostle  is  following  on  closely 
with  his  train  of  argument  ;  and  so  these  utterances 
must  be  connected  with  what  goes  before,  and  of  course 
will  find  their  first  as  well  as  their  most  legitimate  ex- 
planation in  the  context.  He  means  by  this  expression, 
'^  all  things,"  all  of  which  he  has  been  speaking,  all  these 
things.  And  these  are  what  he  calls  in  general  terms 
*'the  sufferings  of  the  present  time."  Hence  the  verse 
brings  us  at  least  this  one  thought,  which  in  itself  is 


THE  SECURITY  OF  BELIEVERS.  1 5 

All  in  one  plan.  Analysis. 

very  valuable  :  whatever  in  the  providential  arrange- 
ments of  our  daily  existence  during  this  imperfect  state 
can  make  our  hearts  to  suffer,  has  a  consolatory  allevia- 
tion behind  it,  that  it  is  a  part  of  one  omniscient  plan 
for  our  permanent  benefit.  It  is  working  with  other 
things  for  our  good. 

Our  perplexities  and  our  harassments,  our  losses  and 
our  crosses,  our  wounded  pride  and  our  disappointed 
ambition,  the  desertion  of  our  companion,  the  betrayal 
of  our  friend,  our  fears  without  and  our  fightings  with- 
in, poverty,  sickness,  and  bereavement,  our  doubts,  our 
temptations,  and  our  conflicts,  indeed,  whatever  can 
make  the  brain  weary  or  the  heart  sore — all  these  work 
together  for  good. 

Such  a  verse  as  this,  therefore,  is  simply  priceless. 
It  discloses  a  principle  in  the  governing  of  this  world 
which  reduces  everything  to  order.  All  these  multiform 
and  in  many  respects  antagonistic  agents  are  merely 
moving  on  to  accomplish  God's  will  for  his  chosen. 
Life  is  a  beautiful  picture  of  method  and  fixed  law. 
The  verse  is  worth  an  analysis,  and  might  do  for  the 
text  of  a  profitable  sermon.  All  things  act  energetically — 
they  *Svork."  All  things  act  harmoniously — they  *'work 
together."  All  things  act  beneficently — they  'Svork  toge- 
ther for  good."  All  things  act  definitely — they  **work 
together  for  good  to  them  that  love  God,  to  them  who 
are  the  called  according  to  his  purpose." 

The  word  rendered  work  here  is  one  of  the  strongest 
in  the  language  in  which  the  New  Testament  was  writ- 


l6  THE  SECURITY  OF  BELIEVERS. 

Divine  energy.  The  river  Chebar. 

ten.  It  is  that  from  which  our  word  ''energy  "  comes 
by  derivation.  And  the  apostle  employs  it  to  denote 
the  intensest  and  most  tireless  activity  possible  or  con- 
ceivable. The  universe  is  all  alive  under  the  divine 
hand.  Jesus  Christ  said,  as  if  to  enforce  the  thought, 
*'  My  Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I  work."  The  earth 
rocks  with  the  violence  of  the  history  that  sweeps  across 
it. 

One  grand  vision  there  is  presented  to  us  in  the  Scrip- 
tures, which  is  intended  to  image  directly  the  unresting 
and  tireless  providence  of  God.  It  is  that  which  the 
prophet  Ezekiel  saw  by  the  river  Chebar,  the  living 
creatures  and  the  wheels.  As  you  study  his  descrip- 
tion, no  one  characteristic  w411  more  impress  itself  upon 
your  imagination  than  the  limitless  energy  with  which 
all  their  movements  are  accomplished.  The  living  crea- 
tures had  wings,  but  even  the  wings  were  stretched  up- 
ward. They  went ;  but  we  are  told  that  when  they 
went,  they  flew.  They  were  like  lamps ;  but  the  lamps 
seemed  unable  to  be  still ;  they  blazed  to  and  fro,  up 
and  down.  They  were  like  coals  of  fire  ;  but  the  coals 
w^ere  neither  lurid  nor  dull,  they  burned  and  flashed 
with  kindled  flame.  And  they  *'ran  and  returned  as 
the  appearance  of  a  flash  of  lightning." 

Now,  remember  that  all  these  are  but  symbols  of  the 
providential  interpositions  of  God  in  human  affairs. 
Let  any  thoughtful  man  cast  his  eye  around  the  world 
as  it  has  appeared  during  the  past  five  or  ten  years. 
See  how  events  have  hurried.     There  has  not  been  one 


THE  SECURITY   OF  BELIEVERS.  \*J 

The  Breaker.  Orange-trees. 

day  of  quiet  in  all  the  grand  army  of  God.  Despotisms 
have  been  overturned.  Thrones  have  been  moved. 
Many  a  door  has  been  opened  for  the  gospel  almost  as 
mysteriously  as  that  of  Simon  Peter's  prison  by  the 
angel  from  heaven.  You  may  call  these  movements  the 
advancement  of  civilization  as  you  will ;  they  are  really 
the  ''workings"  of  God  in  person.  This  is  the  fulfill- 
ment of  prophecy:  ''The  breaker  is  come  up  before 
them  ;  they  have  broken  up  and  have  passed  through 
the  gate,  and  are  gone  out  by  it,  and  their  King  shall 
pass  before  them,  and  the  Lord  on  the  head  of  them." 
One  purpose  of  God  rules  the  whole  world. 

What  is  that  purpose  ?  The  verses  which  follow  this 
one  state  it  clearly :  "  For  whom  he  did  foreknow,  he 
also  did  predestinate  to  be  conformed  to  the  image  of 
his  Son,  that  he  might  be  the  first-born  among  many 
brethren.  Moreover,  whom  he  did  predestinate,  them 
he  also  called :  and  whom  he  called,  them  he  also  jus- 
tified: and  whom  he  justified,  them  he  also  glorified." 
Here  is  one  vast  plan  to  bring  home  the  sons  of  God 
to  glory ;  and  they  have  to  be  chosen,  trained  in  spirit, 
called,  justified  by  an  atonement,  and  glorified.  The 
purpose  is  complex  in  particulars,  and  no  one  was 
ever  able  just  to  arrange  the  details  in  order  of  time. 
To  our  human  eyes  God's  decrees  seem — like  oranges 
in  the  tropics — to  be  growing  on  the  tree  of  life,  blos- 
soms and  fruits  at  the  very  same  moment.  When  he 
began  to  predestinate,  or  when  he  will  cease  to  glo- 
rify, we  cannot  say.     But  it  is  evident  that  he  is  agi- 


iS  THE   SECURITY   OF   BELIEVERS. 

Working  "  together."  Wheels. 

tating  the  race  with  all  these  decrees  at  once.  The 
principal  difficulty  we  experience,  and  the  chief  mis- 
take w^e  make,  is  in  thinking  that  because  we  can  see 
how  things  ivorlz^  we  can  also  pronounce  how  they  work 
together.  We  try  to  adjust  the  wheels  in  the  middle  of 
the  wheels. 

In  the  proudest  moment  of  our  vaunting  wisdom,  we 
find  ourselves  entirely  at  fault  in  prediction.  Results 
prove  our  computatioas  to  be  puerile  and  vain.  We 
are  wont  to  look  upon  the  world  part  at  a  time.  We 
imagine  wx  quite  understand  the  architecture  of  the 
universe  when  we  have  examined  one  brick  under  a 
microscope.  We  study  history  piecemeal,  and  are  fain 
to  complain  that  it  eludes  all  law  of  sagacious  anticipa- 
tion. Why  should  it  not?  For  God  brings  to  naught 
the  things  that  are  by  the  things  that  are  not ;  and  w^hen 
the  information  of  most  of  us  is  so  short  concerning 
things  that  are^  who  shall  say  he  is  acquainted  with 
all  the  possibilities  of  things  that  are  not  2 

Hence  our  impertinence.  Because  we  are  disap- 
pointed, we  assert  that  the  race  is  governed  by  a 
reckless  caprice.  Comets  of  ''things  that  are  not," 
keep  dashing  in  among  the  planets  ''fhat  are,"  which 
w^e  had  just  got  arranged  to  suit  our  plan  when  we 
had  arisen  to  prophesy.  And  w^e  cry  out  that  life  is 
unsettled,  and  events  are  lawdess.  Some  wheels,  we 
deem  ourselves  profound  enough  to  say,  are  working 
in  the  wrong  direction.  Some  levers,  we  are  certain, 
act   backward  and  cause   collision.     It   needs   a  great 


THE   SECURITY   OF   BELIEVERS.  I9 

Everything  right  now.  God's  river. 

deal  of  humility  to  admit  that  we  know  nothing 
about  the  manner  in  which  the  spiritual  adjustments 
are  made,  and  tranquilly  to  rest  in  the  satisfied  con- 
clusion that  all  the  machinery  of  divine  government 
is  managed  safely,  and  is  under  intelligent  control. 
All  things  work  "together." 

Nor  is  this  all :  even  the  highest  faith  seems  some- 
times to  think  it  has  reached  proper  measure  of  ac- 
quiescence when  it  can  say  that  all  will  be  right  by 
and  by.  True  confidence  is  that  which  can  answer, 
it  is  all  right  now.  One  fine  point  there  is  in  this 
verse  which  must  not  be*  overlooked.  Inspiration 
sometimes  resides  in  a  tense  of  grammar.  And  the 
verse  does  not  assert — all  things  will  work  together 
for  good — but  all  things  are  now  working.  The  mu- 
tual arrangements  for  advantage  are  moving  forward 
this  very  day  and  hour.  Your  little  trouble  and  mine, 
yesterday  and  this  morning,  is  fully  as  much  embraced 
in  the  divine  plan  as  Ahasuerus'  sleepless  night,  Paul's 
shipwreck,  or  Isaiah's  martyrdom.  God's  understand- 
ing is  clear,  and  anticipatory  of  these  human  experi- 
ences. 

We  must  rid  our  minds  of  the  impression  that  the 
stream  of  almighty  providence  is  like  a  turbid  rivulet, 
which  a  child  knows  he  must  wait  to  have  settled  be- 
fore it  will  run  crystal  after  a  storm.  God's  river  of 
human  life  is  impenetrable  to  our  eyes,  not  because 
it  is  roiled  with  the  rubbish  of  earthly  confusion,  but 
because   in  itself   it  is  deep   and  shadowy  in   majestic 


20  THE   SECURITY   OF   BELIEVERS. 

On  the  banks.  The  saints'  song. 

windings  of  its  channel.  If  a  man  supposes  that  he 
can  always  fathom  a  purpose  which  begins  at  the 
throne  of  the  Lamb,  runs  through  foreknowledge  and 
predestination,  touches  at  conformity  and  the  supre- 
macy of  Christ,  flows  across  effectual  calling,  broad- 
ens into  justification,  and  ends  in  glory,  he  has  poor 
register  of  his  own  attainments  and  wonderful  con- 
ceit of  his  own  gifts.  He  who  sits  down  on  the  banks 
of  the  two  verses  I  have  just  quoted,  would  do  well 
to  let  sounding-lines  alone,  and  look  along  the  sweet 
shores  where  he  will  find  many  a  tree  with  glorious 
fruitage,  whose  leaves  are  for  the  healing  of  the  na- 
tions. 

So  here  is  a  moment  for  us  to  sing  a  bright  song. 
All  things  not  only  work  together,  but  work  together 
*' for  good."  The  expression,  literally  rendered,  would 
read,  they  work  together  into  good.  They  all  play 
into  one  grand  purpose,  and  that  is  beneficent  in  its 
bearing  altogether.  ''What  shall  we  then  say  to 
these  things  ?  If  God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against 
us  ?  He  that  spared  not  his  own  Son,  but  delivered 
him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  he  not  with  him  also 
freely  give  us  all  things  ?  Who  shall  lay  anything  to 
the  charge  of  God's  elect?  It  is  God  that  justifieth: 
who  is  he  that  condemneth  ?  It  is  Christ  that  died, 
yea  rather,  that  is  risen  again,  who  is  even  at  the 
ricrht  hand  of  God,  who  also  maketh  intercession  for 


us. 


Now  let  us  note,  for  one   thing,  that  this  good  of 


THE   SECURITY   OF  BELIEVERS.  21 

Individual  good.  We  shall  know  hereafter, 

which  the  apostle  is  speaking  is  individual  good,  as 
distinct  from  universal.  Hitherto  it  has  been  deemed 
a  necessary  element  of  all  human  philosophies  that 
now  and  then  it  should  be  expedient  to  have  one 
man  die  for  the  nation ;  that  in  some  instances  an 
isolated  interest  must  be  struck  down  in  order  to  save 
the  public  weal.  But  with  God  this  is  not  so.  No 
friction  nor  fracture  can  be  found  in  his  government. 
The  **good"  is  for  all  because  it  is  for  each.  The 
general  good  is  secured  by  securing  the  individual 
good  universally. 

And  then  let  us  note,  for  another  thing,  that  this  good 
of  which  the  apostle  is  speaking  is  real  good,  as  distinct 
from  apparent.  Under  the  gospel  these  do  indeed  often 
coincide.  Honor  and  thrift,  success  and  fame,  accrue 
not  infrequently  to  the  Christian.  But  this  is  all  adven- 
titious ;  the  aim  is  at  the  real  good,  whether  it  can  be 
seen  or  not  seen.  What  that  may  be  in  any  specific 
case,  God  knows  best ;  and  he  acts  on  his  own  knowl- 
edge, not  on  our  impressions  or  in  answer  to  our  desires. 
That  is  to  say,  he  is  the  judge  concerning  the  particular 
good  for  the  accomplishment  of  which  all  the  agencies 
of  his  providence  are  moving  forward. 

So  it  may  be  quite  possible,  and  doubtless  it  is  often 
the  case,  that  circumstances  of  deepest  trial  are  all  the 
time  working  for  our  prodigious  advantage  ;  and  yet 
the  world  is  pitying  our  misfortune,  and  even  we  our- 
selves are  disposed  to  murmur  at  the  sharp  lot,  rather 
than  wait  for  the  result  of  the  discipline. 


22  THE  SECURITY   OF  BELIEVERS. 

The  chrysalis  state.  Am  I  his  ? 

**  Here  in  our  chrysalis  state  we  lie, 

Shaping  our  wings  for  a  heavenly  birth  ; 
And  the  spirit,  which  fain  would  mount  and  fly, 

Is  bound  by  life's  pitiful  clogs  to  earth. 
But  sooner  or  later  its  chains  shall  be  riven : 

We  shall  gain  the  knowledge  for  which  we  sigh; 
Why  much  was  withheld,  and  little  given — 

We  shall  know  God's  reason  by  and   by." 


Meantime,  it  must  never  be  forgotten  that  providence 
works  definitely,  and  chooses  its  own  beneficiaries.  The 
recipients  of  God's  favor  are — on  the  human  side — those 
"  that  love  God  ; "  and — on  the  divine  side — those  who 
are  the  "called  according  to  his  purpose."  Whoever 
loves  God  is  the  elect  of  God.  Whether  any  one  of  us 
in  particular,  therefore,  is  of  right  embraced  in  such  an 
announcement  as  that  v/e  have  been  studying,  depends 
on  a  solemn  question  yet  unanswered,  "  Am  I  his,  or 
am  I  not  ? "  Once  that  is  settled,  the  security  of  each 
believer  is  fixed.  ''Who  shall  separate  us  from  the  love 
of  Christ  ?  shall  tribulation,  or  distress,  or  persecution, 
or  famine,  or  nakedness,  or  peril,  or  sword  ?  As  it  is 
written.  For  thy  sake  wq  are  killed  all  the  day  long,  we 
are  accounted  as  sheep  for  tlie  slaughter.  Nay,  in  all 
these  things  we  are  more  than  conquerors,  through  him 
that  loved  us." 

In  one  supreme  moment  now  real  Christians  sweep 
out  of  their  individual  nothingness,  and  become  the 
very  notables — the  kings  and  priests  of  Christ's  realm. 

It  may  not  be  easy  to  explain  philosophically  how  it 


THE   SECURITY   OF   BELIEVERS.  23 

The  widow's  hymn.  Minor  disquiets, 

happens  that  a  believer's  soul  is  perfectly  at  rest  in  the 
midst  of  tempestuous  troubles,  as  soon  as  he  is  certain 
that  Christ  is  his  Saviour  under  the  covenant ;  but  as- 
suredly this  is  a  fact.  I  once  knew  a  devoted  woman, 
whose  husband  was  brought  dead  into  her  room,  after 
an  hour's  departure  in  the  fulness  of  strength.  They 
laid  him  on  the  sofa,  while  the  tearless  wife  sat  dis- 
tracted, smoothing  his  hair.  No  one  could  speak,  as 
the  awful  hour  passed  on.  Suddenly  she  turned  to  the 
hushed  group  of  friends  around  :  *' Will  some  one  please 
start  a  hymn  ?  "  was  her  amazing  request.  They  could 
not  choose.  One  whispered,  ''  God  moves  in  a  myste- 
rious way."  Another  suggested,  **  In  the  Christian's 
home  in  glory."  But  they  finally  appealed  to  the 
mourner  to  make  her  own  choice.  She  exclaimed  in- 
stantly, *'  Not  all  the  blood  of  beasts." 

They  obeyed,  of  course  ;  and  through  the  first  two  or 
three  stanzas  she  simply  beat  the  time  with  an  uncon- 
scious gesture.  But  as  they  advanced,  her  voice  began 
to  join  with  the  others.  When  they  reached,  *'My  faith 
would  lay  her  hand,"  she  suddenly  spoke  the  words,  and 
sang  on,  while  her  eyes  filled  with  sweet,  natural  tears. 
And  in  the  last  verse  she  found  her  comfort,  for  her  soul 
went  wholly  out  in  joy  under  the  fresh  sense  of  par- 
doned sin  :  if  only  her  future  was  secure,  what  mattered 
earthly  trial  now  ? 

The  meaning  of  all  this  experience  seems  to  be  found 
in  the  fact  that,  once  the  Christian  reaches  his  spiritual 
rest  in  a  Saviour,  all  minor  disquiets  cease  to  disturb 


24  THE   SECURITY   OF   BELIEVERS. 

Nt)thing  going  awreck.  God's  love. 

him.  When  sin  is  removed,  God  is  his  father,  Jesus  is 
his  elder  brother,  and  heaven  is  his  home.  Hence  he 
abides  in  the  confidence  of  an  unfaltering  faith. 

What  new  significance  such  a  consideration  puts  upon 
our  daily  life  !  See  where  we  are  to-day.  One  all-per- 
vading spirit  agitates  the  world.  The  old  earth  is  but 
the  field  now  where  redemption  is  working  out  for  our 
race  ;  God  spares  the  planet  yet  a  while  from  final  fires 
just  for  that.  We  see  strange  sights  and  cannot  un- 
derstand them.  Dismal  forebodings,  falling  fortunes, 
thwarted  plans,  tumults,  wars,  pestilences,  and  earth- 
quakes—  all  this  world  is  restless  and  alarmed.  Still 
nothing  is  going  awreck.  *'  O  ye  of  little  faith !  why 
are  ye  troubled  ? " 

Let  the  deluge  rise  at  will :  it  wall  only  bear  each 
floating  ark  nearer  heaven.  "  For  I  am  persuaded  that 
neither  death,  nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor  principalities, 
nor  powers,  nor  things  present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor 
height,  nor  depth,  nor  any  other  creature,  shall  be  able 
to  separate  us  from  the  love  of  God  which  is  in  Christ 
Jesus  our  Lord." 


III. 

CHRISTIAN   LOVE. 

And    now   aeideth    faith,   hope,   charity,   these   three  ;    but 
THE  greatest  OF  THESE  IS  CHARITY. — I  Corinthians  13  :  13. 

In  an  old  ecclesiastical  tradition  it  is  related  of  the 
apostle  John,  who  was  then  the  very  last  of  the  chosen 
followers  of  Jesus,  that  in  his  closing  years  of  feeble- 
ness, when  too  infirm  for  walking,  he  was  wont  to  be 
borne  into  the  Christian  assemblies  for  the  mere  pur- 
pose of  repeating  a  brief  sentence:  ''Little  children, 
love  one  another." 

He  was  the  apostle  of  love,  as  Paul  was  the  apostle  of 
logic.  So  it  is  exceedingly  interesting  to  find  Paul  in 
one  great  instance  giving  a  description  of  that  peculiar 
grace  which  John  had  so  urged  and  exemplified.  For 
certainly  everybody  understands  that  the  gift  called 
"charity,"  in  i  Corinthians  13,  is  nothing  more  nor 
less  than  Christian  love.  Our  later  uses  of  the  word 
have  limited  it,  so  that  it  refers  now  almost  exclusively 
to  generosity  in  the  bestowment  of  alms.  But  in  the 
New  Testament  it  signifies  that  far-reaching  brotherly 
affection  which  is  the  peculiar  characteristic  of  the 
household  of  God. 

Surely,  if  there  be  upon  this  earth  anywhere  a  class 


26  CHRISTIAN   LOVE. 

Desire  above  duty.  "  Rabboni." 

of  persons  who  ought  to  be  united  in  spirit,  knit  in 
judgment,  earnest  in  defence  of  each  other,  considerate 
in  every  pronunciation,  fraternally  sincere  and  true, 
Christians  are  the  ones  who  compose  it.  Love  links 
them  together,  and  renders  their  lot  common. 

Let  us  begin  with  the  remark  here  that  love  is  the 
essential  principle  of  all  genuine  religion.  For  piety 
consists  in  desire^  rather  than  in  duty.  We  love  God  be- 
cause he  first  loved  us.  This  is  why  every  chapter  in 
the  New  Testament  talks  so  much  about  the  hearts  of 
men.  The  heart  was  the  old  symbol  of  affection,  and 
the  gospel  w^as  meant  to  be  a  scheme  of  faith  whose 
home  should  be  located  in  the  warmest  and  most  vital 
centre  of  our  being. 

When  the  poor  woman  found  her  unostentatious  way 
to  the  very  couch  of  our  Lord,  as  he  sat  at  meat,  and 
began  to  wash  his  feet  with  her  tears  and  wipe  them 
wi::h  the  hairs  of  her  head,  the  highest  encomium  which 
could  be  pronounced  on  her  in  the  presence  of  the 
proud  Simon  was  this  :  *'  Her  sins,  which  are  many,  are 
forgiven,  for  she  loved  much."  This  affection,  which 
Christians  feel,  is  in  every  case  called  forth  into  its 
strength  by  the  manifested  affection  of  the  Redeemer. 
He  says  to  each  child  of  his,  with  inexpressible  tender- 
ness, *'  Mary,"  and  the  name  he  uses  announces  his  feel- 
ing. The  only  answer,  therefore,  which  is  befitting,  is 
always  the  same,  ''Rabboni."  The  vast  difference  be- 
tween our  love  and  his  is,  that  we  find  him  the  one  alto- 
gether lovely,  and  so  we  love  him  the  moment  we  truly 


CHRISTIAN   LOVE.  2/ 

The  great  test.  Little  ministries. 

see  him  ;  but  he  loves  us  as  we  are,  and  by  his  very  un- 
merited affection  renders  us  lovely. 

Here,  then,  is  a  test  for  universal  use  in  self-examina- 
tion. It  is  love  that  makes  the  Christian.  It  is  not 
talent ;  for  Paul  says :  *'  Though  I  speak  with  the 
tongues  of  men  and  of  angels,  and  have  not  charity,  I 
am  become  as  sounding  brass,  or  a  tinkling  cymbal." 
It  is  not  gifts  ;  for  Paul  says  :  "  And  though  I  have  the 
gift  of  prophecy,  and  understand  all  mysteries,  and  all 
knowledge  ;  and  though  I  have  all  faith,  so  that  I  could 
remove  mountains,  and  have  not  charity,  I  am  nothing." 
It  is  not  merit ;  for  Paul  says  :  "And  though  I  bestow 
all  my  goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and  though  I  give  my 
body  to  be  burned,  and  have  not  charity,  it  proliteth  me 
nothing."  It  is  simply  love,  and  in  the  growth  of  love 
is  found  our  progress. 

No  matter  how  frequently  one  fasts  ;  no  matter  how 
faithfully  one  pays  tithes  for  the  poor ;  no  matter  how 
many  nor  how  long  may  be  one's  prayers  ;  no  matter 
how  musical  the  song  one  may  sing  ;  is  the  love  of  God 
shed  abroad  in  one's  heart  ? — that  is  the  question. 
*'Love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law."  God  has  always 
honored  simple  affection  more  than  great  gifts.  The 
work  of  this  w^orld  is  often  done  by  the  most  inconspic- 
uous people.  The  little  ministries  of  every-day  life, 
sometimes  more  than  the  showy  exploits  of  unusual 
effort,  are  what  seem  to  have  called  from  the  Master 
the  most  hearty  approval,  and  received  the  rewards  of 
grandest  success. 


28  CHRISTIAN   LOVE. 


Equal  exposures.  Spiritual  rehearsals. 

Hence  we  may  observe,  in  the  second  place,  that  love 
is  the  principle  of  all  genuine  social  life.  "  If  God  so 
loves  us,  we  ought  also  to  love  one  another."  Christians 
profess  to  have  a  mutual  likeness  to  the  one  Saviour  of 
all.  They  are  the  children  of  one  Father's  household. 
They  claim  a  sovereign  interest  in  the  common  salva- 
tion.    Hence,  they  must  love  each  other  as  kindred. 

Moreover,  they  are  under  equal  exposures.  The  world 
drives  up  against  them  on  the  outside.  They  have  perils 
from  the  same  direction.  A  harsh  censure,  which  falls 
on  one  to-day,  it  may  be  another's  lot  to  have  to  bear 
to-morrow.  Biting  criticisms  that  for  one  sharp  hour 
light  on  you,  are  just  as  likely  to  come  and  sting  me 
the  next.  It  would  be  wise  to  organize  for  mutual 
defence. 

Then  again  :  we  all  have  the  same  work — a  work 
which  will  be  certain  to  render  one  unwelcome  and 
unpopular  in  proportion  to  the  faithfulness  which  he 
bestows  upon  it.  If  we  sit  down  together  on  some  rest- 
ful evening,  we  shall  find  that  the  rehearsals  of  our 
religious  histories  v/ill  be  pretty  much  the  same.  Our 
falls  into  alarming  temptation  may  have  their  personal 
peculiarities,  and  bear  the  image  of  <our  temperaments 
and  education  ;  but  we  all  have  had  falls.  One  has 
been  in  doubt  over  a  certain  action  ;  the  other  has  been 
clear ;  but  now,  to  be  frank  about  it,  the  other  has  had 
his  perplexity  upon  a  different  point.  It  is  time  we 
comforted  each  other  with  a  comparison  of  tasks  and  of 
patience  under  them. 


CHRISTIAN  LOVE.  29 

What  charity  is.  Three  readings. 

Bring  together  thus  a  company  of  those  of  like  char- 
acter, of  similar  exposures,  and  with  the  same  work  to 
do,  and  it  becomes  absolutely  necessary  that  some  sort 
of  principle  of  association,  by  which  intercourse  may 
be  facilitated,  should  be  established  among  them. 
*'  Behold  how  good  a  thing  it  is  for  brethren  to  dwell 
together  in  unity ! "  Here  comes  in  the  chapter  we 
have  been  quoting.  Paul,  as  if  in  despair  of  making 
final  impression  by  a  mere  statement,  introduces  a  de- 
tailed description  of  the  grace  he  is  commending.  He 
tells  us  what  charity  is  by  saying  what  it  will  do  : 
''Charity  suffereth  long,  and  is  kind;  charity  envieth 
not ;  charity  vaunteth  not  itself,  is  not  puffed  up,  doth 
not  behave  itself  unseemly,  seeketh  not  her  own,  is 
not  easily  provoked,  thinketh  no  evil ;  rejoiceth  not 
in  iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in  the  truth ;  bearcth  all 
things,  believeth  all  things,  hopeth  all  things,  endur- 
eth  all  things." 

Now  if  I  wxre  teaching  a  class  the  lessons  of  this 
chapter,  I  would  have  these  verses  read  over  aloud 
three  times  by  the  three  best  scholars  I  had,  w^ith  a 
new  substitution  of  a  word  in  each  instance.  I  w^ould 
put  in  the  word  ** gentleman"  first,  and  see  how  it 
would  sound  to  say,  **A  gentle77ian  suffereth  long  and 
is  kind  :  beareth  all  things,  believeth  all  things,  hopeth 
all  things,  endureth  all  things."  Or,  perhaps,  "A  lady 
doth  not  behave  herself  unseemly,  seeketh  not  her 
own,  is  not  easily  provoked,  thinketh  no  evil."  Thus 
I  judge  I   could  make  young  people  understand  that 


30  CHRISTIAN   LOVE. 


Good  breeding.  The  model  Master. 

in  genuine  Christian  behavior  is  found  the  highest 
politeness. 

Then  next  I  would  introduce  the  word  thus:  **A 
Christian  rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in 
the  truth."  Or  thus:  *'A  Christian  envieth  not;  a 
Christian  vaunteth  not  himself,  is  not  puffed  up." 
For  in  this  way  I  should  hope  I  might  show  every 
one  what  a  far  reach  true  piety  has  ;  how  it  covers 
all  the  ordinary  courtesies  of  life,  and  pushes  out  into 
endeavors  of  kindness  toward  every  soul  that  is  in 
trouble. 

But,  chief  of  all,  it  v^rould  give  me  real  delight  to 
hear  one  reading  aloud  the  whole  passage  with  the 
word  ^'■Christ''  in  it  in  the  place  of  ''''charity;''  for 
thus  would  come  to  light  the  grand  lesson,  that  in 
Jesus,  our  divine  Lord,  is  found  the  highest  embodi- 
ment of  grace  and  glory.  What  a  commentary  the 
w^hole  New  Testament  furnishes  on  these  words : 
''Christ  suffered  long  and  was  kind;  Christ  envied 
not ;  Christ  vaunted  not  himself,  was  not  puffed  up  ; 
Christ  bore  all  things,  believed  all  things,  hoped  all 
things,  endured  all  things ! "  He  who  is  the  Master 
was  also  the  Model. 

Move  forward  now  for  a  third  observation.  Love  is 
the  principle  of  all  eminent  zeal.  Those  who  are  in 
earnest  for  doing  good  are  the  likeliest  to  be  safe 
from  doing  evil.  There  is  instruction  in  the  story  a 
Persian  writer  tells  of  himself.  ''Having  once  in  my 
youth,"  says  he,   "notions  of  severe  piety,   I  used  to 


CHRISTIAN  LOVE.  31 

A  Persian  story.  Leander. 

rise  in  the  night  to  pray  and  read  the  Koran.  And 
on  one  occasion,  as  I  was  engaged  in  these  exercises, 
my  father,  a  man  of  practical  religion  and  of  eminent 
virtue,  awoke  while  I  was  studying  aloud.  I  said  to 
him,  *  Behold,  thy  other  children  are  lost  in  slumber, 
but  I  alone  wake  to  praise  God.'  And  he  answered, 
*Son  of  my  soul,  it  is  better  to  sleep  than  to  wake  to 
remark  the  faults  of  brethren.'" 

Outside  work  is  the  best  relief  for  dyspeptic  carping. 
But  there  is  no  comfort  in  work  where  there  is  not  love 
as  the  motive  of  it.  God  loved  the  world  ;  Christ  loved 
the  souls  he  died  to  redeem  ;  Christians  are  moved  by 
love  for  those  around  them  ;  or  else  the  work  is  drudg- 
ery, and  can  never  claim  blessing. 

What  will  not  love  do  and  dare  ?  With  only  an 
earthly  object  Love  swam  the  Hellespont,  and  gave 
a  name  to  every  Hero  who  holds  out  a  torch.  With 
no  more  than  filial  strength,  it  sent  Coriolanus  back 
from  treason  at  the  gates,  and  delivered  Rome  from 
downfall.  Once  having  place  in  the  heart  of  a  Chris- 
tian, it  rouses  him  to  energy  almost  superhuman.  **  I 
would  think  it  greater  happiness,"  said  Matthew  Henry, 
*'to  gain  one  soul  to  Christ,  than  mountains  of  gold 
and  silver  to  myself:  if  I  do  not  gain  souls,  I  shall 
enjoy  all  other  gains  with  very  little  satisfaction  :  and 
I  would  rather  beg  my  bread  from  door  to  door  than 
neglect  this  great  work." 

Love  seerns  actually  inexhaustible,  while  other  graces 
change.      This    is   the    reason   why   the   apostle    com- 


32  CHRISTIAN  LOVE. 


Summerfield.  John  Knox. 

mends  it  the  most :  "  Charity  never  faileth  ;  but  whe- 
ther there  be  prophecies,  they  shall  fail ;  whether  there 
be  tongues,  they  shall  cease  ;  whether  there  be  know- 
ledge, it  shall  vanish  away."  Instances  have  been 
known  in  which  this  passionate  love  for  souls  has 
w^orn  out  the  strength  of  the  heart  in  which  it  dwelt, 
without  seeming  to  lessen  in  its  volume.  Some  of 
us  whose  early  home  was  among  the  forests  remem- 
ber how  the  choppers  used  to  take  coals  out  of  one 
brush-heap  to  light  another ;  they  would  place  them 
all  alive  upon  a  thick  wisp  of  straw,  and  then  rush 
through  the  air  with  the  smoke  and  flame  streaming 
behind  them  ;  but  the  straw  would  burn  as  they  ran, 
and,  when  the  coals  dropped  on  the  rubbish,  would 
burst  into  a  flash  and  consume  itself  v/ith  its  burden. 
That  was  Montgomery's  figure  by  which  he  sought 
to  describe  Summerfield ;  he  said  he  carried  the  blaze 
which  kindled  others,  and  that  burned  himself  to 
ashes.  His  charity  never  failed  till  himself  vanished 
away. 

This  zeal,  the  principle  of  which  is  love,  is  very  cou- 
rageous. It  forgets  itself  ;  it  grows  humble  as  it  grows 
strong.  It  becomes  all  things  to  all  men,  in  the  hope  it 
may  save  some  ;  and  it  is  all  the  more  upright  when  it 
bends.  Queen  Mary  burst  into  tears  of  the  bitterest 
vexation  and  grief,  when  John  Knox  told  her  of  duty 
and  rebuked  her  for  sin.  And  the  stubborn  old 
Scotchman  wept  as  profusely  as  she  did,  while  he 
uttered  those    memorable  words:    "Madam,    in    God's 


CHRISTIAN  LOVE.  33 

Whitefield.  The  heart  lives  forever. 

presence  I  speak  :  I  never  delighted  in  the  weeping 
of  any  of  God's  creatures  :  yea,  I  can  hardly  abide 
the  tears  of  my  own  boys  when  my  hands  correct 
them  :  much  less  then  can  I  rejoice  in  your  Majesty's 
weeping  :  but  seeing  I  have  offered  unto  you  no  just 
occasion  to  be  offended,  I  must  sustain  these  tears, 
rather  than  I  dare  hurt  my  conscience  or  betray  the 
commonwealth  by  silence." 

But  then,  how  gentle  this  love  is  also  !  Love  is  never 
noisy,  never  violent,  when  it  seeks  to  win  its  way.  This 
is  the  only  natural  force  that  works  by  tenderness.  It 
made  Paul  weep,  it  filled  the  eyes  of  Jesus  with  tears. 
Yet  there  is  no  effeminacy  in  it.  John,  who  spoke  most 
about  it,  was  one  whom  they  called  Boanerges,  because 
he  was  a  "  son  of  thunder."  Such  love  is  effective  when 
everything  else  would  fail.  "I  came  to  break  your 
head,"  once  said  a  rough  man  to  Whitefield,  with  a  big 
stone  in  hand;  "but  by  the  grace  of  God  you  have 
broken  my  heart." 

And  so  at  the  last  let  us  observ^e  that  love  is  the  prin- 
ciple of  heavenly  enjoyment.  **  Your  heart  shall  live 
forever."  This  wonderful  charity  issues  in  a  complete- 
ness at  the  limit  of  life,  that  the  life  itself  which  it  ten- 
anted never  knew,  nor  even  suspected  :  *'  For  we  know 
in  part,  and  we  prophesy  in  part.  But  when  that  which 
is  perfect  is  come,  then  that  which  is  in  part  shall  be 
done  away.  When  I  was  a  child,  I  spake  as  a  child,  I 
understood  as  a  child,  I  thought  as  a  child  :  but  when  I 
became  a  man,  I  put  away  childish  things." 


34  CHRISTIAN  LOVE. 


The  new  life.  Plato's  cave. 

*' Nothing  resting  in  its  own  completeness 

Can  have  power  or  beauty;    but  alone 
Because  it  leads  or  tends  to  further  sweetness, 

Fuller,  higher,  deeper,  than  its  own. 
Life  is  only  brigliter  when  it  proceedeth 

Toward  a  truer,  deeper  life  above ; 
Human  love  is  sweetest  when  it  leadeth 

To  a  more  divine  and  perfect  love." 

What  that  other  existence  out  before  us  will  be,  we 
are  not  fully  told.  But  love  w^ill  certainly  reign  in 
heaven  where  God  is,  for  God  is  love.  Old  friends  will 
be  reached  again.  The  parted  and  the  pure  will  find 
each  other  once  more.  The  chief  characteristic  of  that 
life  would  seem  to  be  its  permanency.  The  Scripture 
takes  greatest  pains  to  show  us  that  in  this  dazzling, 
fading,  illusive  universe  there  is,  after  all,  one  thing 
which  shall  stand  in  the  wreck  of  matter  and  the  crush 
of  worlds.  **  The  world  passeth  away,  and  the  lust 
thereof ;  but  he  that  doeth  the  will  of  God  shall  abide 
forever."  A  will  subdued  to  a  will  that  is  divine  is  per- 
emptorily, authoritatively,  declared  to  be  imperishable. 

But  our  disclosures  are  as  yet  withheld,  and  our  vi- 
sions are  quite  imperfect.  It  was  the  conception  of  an 
ancient  philosopher  that  the  human  soul  was  standing, 
as  it  were,  in  the  recesses  of  a  vast  cavern,  and  gained 
all  its  knowledge  of  the  future  state  by  a  careful  study 
of  the  weird  figures  from  without  which  traced  them- 
selves along  on  the  dimly-lit  inner  walls.  Let  us  accept 
the  image  for  a  moment.     The  Christian  believer  seems 


CHRISTIAN   LOVE.  35 

The  final  vision.  Love  is  all. 

now  to  be  waiting  as  if  within  a  hollow  cave,  girt  by 
the  rock  on  every  side.  Often  through  the  narrow  fis- 
sure which  faith  has  found,  come  struggling  in  a  few 
faint  rays  of  illumination,  that  only  half  reveal  the  mys- 
teries of  his  hard  and  cheerless  home  ;  and  now  and 
then  there  is  a  gleam  of  a  shadowed  picture  on  the 
stones  around  him  which  indicates  the  existence  and 
shows  the  beauty  of  the  magnificent  realities  without. 
Beyond  the  stony  barriers  he  can  hear  the  rush  and  roll 
of  a  spiritual  life,  of  which  he  learns  too  little  t©  satisfy 
his  yearning.  He  longs  for  the  rock-rent  through  which 
he  knows  he  is  one  day  to  pass.  He  is  a  child  ;  but  the 
time  will  come  when  he  shall  put  away  childish  things, 
and  be  forever  a  man. 

At  last  the  hour  arrives.  He  hears  beforehand,  and 
perhaps  trembles  as  he  hears,  the  groanings  and  rum- 
blings of  the  final  convulsion.  The  earth  quakes,  the 
ground  is  opened,  the  walls  divide,  the  prison  is  dis- 
solved, and  the  soul  is  free.  And  oh  !  what  a  sight  is 
that  which  now  bursts  upon  his  vision  !  **  Blessed  are 
the  pure  in  heart,  for  they  shall  see  God."  *' Beloved, 
now  are  we  the  sons  of  God,  and  it  doth  not  yet  appear 
what  we  shall  be  ;  but  we  know  that  when  he  shall  ap- 
pear, we  shall  be  like  him,  for  we  shall  see  him  as  he 
is."  **For  now  we  see  through  a  glass,  darkly;  but 
then  face  to  face  ;  now  I  know  in  part ;  but  then  shall  I 
know  even  as  also  I  am  known." 

Thus,  then,  the  end  of  our  exposition  is  reached. 
When  we  understand  that  love  is  the    principle  of  all 


36  CHRISTIAN   LOVE. 

The  secret  of  order.  The  drowning  man. 

genuine  personal  religion,  the  principle  of  all  genuine 
social  life,  the  principle  of  all  genuine  and  eminent  zeal, 
and  the  principle  of  all  hoped-for  heavenly  enjo3^ment, 
then  we  are  ready  to  accept  the  strong  statement  of  the 
apostle  with  which  he  closes  the  chapter:  **And  now 
abideth  faith,  hope,  charity,  these  three  :  but  the  great- 
est of  these  is  charity." 

For  here  is  the  secret  of  all  composure  in  the  uni- 
verse. *'  I  am  going,"  said  the  dying  Hooker,  ''  to  leave 
a  world  disordered  and  a  church  disorganized,  for  a 
world  and  a  church  where  every  angel  and  every  rank 
of  angels  stand  before  the  throne  in  the  very  post  God 
has  assigned." 

And  here  is  the  secret  of  all  success  in  the  winning  of 
souls.  A  man  had  broken  through  the  ice,  and  was 
drowning  in  the  Merrimac  River.  The  neighbors 
sought  to  save  him  with  a  plank  thrust  out  over  the 
edge.  Twice  he  caught  it  and  slipped  back  in  the 
stream.  Then  he  had  just  strength  to  say,  '*0h,  for 
heaven's  sake,  give  me  the  wood-end  of  the  plank  ! " 
They  pulled  it  in,  and  found  that  the  end  they  offered 
was  round  and  chill  with  ice.  They  changed  it ;  and 
then  his  numb  fmgers  clasped  the  friendly  board,  and 
he  was  saved.  Ah,  me  !  we  must,  in  saving  souls,  pre- 
sent something  besides  the  ice-end  of  si  mere  conven- 
tional piety ! 


IV. 

VICTORY   OVER   DEATH. 

So  WHEN  THIS  CORRUPTIBLE  SHALL  HAVE  PUT  ON  INCORRUPTION, 
AND  THIS  MORTAL  SHALL  HAVE  PUT  ON  IMMORTALITY,  THEN 
SHALL    BB    BROUGHT    TO    PASS    THE    SAYING    THAT    IS    WRITTEN, 

Death  is  swallowed  up  in  victory.— i  Corinthians  15  :  54. 

Virgil  tells  us  that  when  the  pious  ^neas  visited  his 
father,  Anchises,  in  the  Elysian  Fields,  and  had  to  cross 
the  Styx  at  fabled  Charon's  Ferry,  the  frail  boat,  accus- 
tomed to  carry  only  the  tenuous  forms  of  departed  spir- 
its, now  receiving  the  heavy  figure  of  a  living  man, 
writhed  and  creaked  through  all  its  sewed  seams. 

This  was  only  a  poet's  conception,  according  to  his 
light,  of  what  the  apostle  gives  us  under  inspiration, 
concerning  the  relations  of  the  future  life  to  the  gross- 
ness  of  this  :  ''Now  this  I  say,  brethren,  that  flesh  and 
blood  cannot  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God  ;  neither  doth 
corruption  inherit  incorruption." 

We  feel  confident  that  no  corporeal  substance  has 
place  in  a  purely  spiritual  state.  Yet  what  a  purely 
spiritual  state  is  really,  it  would  be  impossible  for  us 
to  tell.  It  may  be  well  to  re»member  that  death  in- 
fluences our  human  lot  only  as  an  intellectual  notion. 
There  is  nothing  in  it  which  strikes  back  upon  the 
fibre  and  substance  of  our  existence.     It  is  not  like  a 


38  VICTORY  OVER  DEATH. 


Death  a  mere  idea.  The  "  sting." 

blot  of  ink  fallen  in  an  open  book,  that  it  should  stain 
the  previous  pages  closed  carelessly  upon  it ;  it  bears 
on  the  future  alone.  If  we  could  and  would  keep  it 
out  of  mind,  it  would  not  render  us  unhappy.  The 
animals  all  around  us  die,  just  as  we  do;  but  they 
give  no  evidence  of  being  affected  by  the  melancholy 
prospect. 

A  lamb  goes  dumb  to  the  slaughter,  because  it  has 
no  sense  of  apprehension.  It  is  our  idea  of  death  which 
brings  us  our  horror.  The  imagination  invests  it  with 
its  dreadful  gloom. 

Hence  the  Scriptures  attack  the  idea;  they  do  not 
appear  to  try  to  disturb  or  rearrange  the  facts.  The 
endeavor  of  the  apostle's  argument,  in  the  epistle  to 
the  Corinthians,  is  directed  toward  the  removal  of 
an  emotional  feeling  which  he  calls  the  sting  of  death. 
So  he  advances  bravely  to  meet  the  issue,  challeng- 
ing a  sharp  attention  by  the  admission  that  there  is 
a  fearful  something,  standing  at  the  extreme  limit  of 
human  life,  v/hich  needs  explaining:  ''Behold,  I  show 
you  a  myster>^;  We  shall  not  all  sleep,  but  we  shall 
all  be  changed,  in  a  moment,  in  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye,  at  the  last  trump  :  for  the  trumpet  shall  sound, 
and  the  dead  shall  be  raised  incorruptible,  and  we 
shall  be  changed.  For  this  corruptible  must  put  on 
incorruption,  and  this  mortal  must  put  on  immortal- 
ity." 

The  parallel  to  this  passage  is  found  in  the  epistle  to 
the  Thessalonians,  some  expressions  in  which  need  al- 


VICTORY   OVER   DEATH.  39 

Three  things.  Final  agonies. 

ways  to  be  laid  alongside  of  it.  Indeed,  the  popular 
mistake,  that  makes  us  shudder  at  this  "mystery,"  is 
better  indicated  in  the  verse  :  **  But  I  would  not  have 
you  to  be  ignorant,  brethren,  concerning  them  which 
are  asleep,  that  ye  sorrow  not,  even  as  others  which 
have  no  hope." 

Here  are  three  things  :  ignorance,  sorrow,  hopeless- 
ness ;  it  would  be  impossible  to  find  stronger  terms  by 
which  to  outline  the  universal  thought,  which  Paul 
deprecates  so  earnestly. 

*'I  would  not  have  you  to  be  ignorant^  The  moment 
that  a  simple  want  of  information  limits  our  progress, 
our  imaginations  begin  to  fashion  for  themselves  and 
construct  a  future  —  just  as  ostriches  run  along  the 
beaten  road  until  they  reach  a  ravine  mist-covered, 
then  they  set  out  to  fly  among  the  clouds. 

There  is  in  the  picture  which  ignorance  draws  a  sense 
of  ineffable  loneliness.  One  spot  there  is  now  on  the 
earth  somewhere,  waiting  for  us ;  one  pathetic  little 
reach  of  land,  six  feet  by  two,  which  is  to  grow  sol- 
emn with  the  charge  of  our  dust  lying  in  it  in  expec- 
tation of  the  final  judgment.  *' There  are  no  bands 
in  their  death."  One  moment  there  is  drawing  nearer 
on  the  dial,  which  is  to  be  awful  with  the  weight  of 
our  solitary  experience,  when  it  is  to  bear  away  the 
last  breath  from  our  nostrils. 

Then  there  is  in  the  picture  an  appalling  terror  as  to 
final  agonies — an  inexplicable  alarm  concerning  what 
may  be  the  experiences  of  the  cliange  we  must  meet. 


40  VICTORY   OVER   DEATH. 

Dr.  Johnson.  Ignorance  proves  nothing. 

Of  the  old  moralist,  Dr.  Johnson,  his  biographer  tells 
us  he  was  all  his  life  in  bondage,  through  fear  of  death. 
"  His  intellect  resembled  a  vast  amphitheatre  ;  in  the 
centre  stood  his  judgment  combating,  like  a  mighty 
gladiator,  those  apprehensions,  which,  like  the  beasts 
of  the  arena,  were  all  around  him  in  the  cells,  ready 
to  be  let  out  any  moment.  After  a  conflict,  he  would 
sometimes  drive  them  back  into  their  dens  :  but  not 
being  able  to  kill  them,  he  was  ever  and  anon  as- 
sailed again."  Thus  we  all  live,  tortured  by  our  ter- 
rors. 

There  is  also  in  this  picture  a  dread  of  disclosures 
beyond.  The  ship  departs  ;  that  is  bad  enough — but, 
oh !  where  is  it  going  to  ?  When  will  it  touch  shore 
again  ?  Providences  are  intricate  ;  they  do  clear,  how- 
ever :  the  path  winds  more  than  ever  here — alas  !  where 
does  its  untrodden  length  lead  ?  So  we  repeat  Job's 
words :  "Are  not  my  days  few?  cease  then,  and  let  me 
alone,  that  I  may  take  comfort  a  little,  before  I  go 
whence  I  shall  not  return,  even  to  the  land  of  dark- 
ness, and  the  shadow  of  death  ;  a  land  of  darkness,  as 
darkness  itself ;  and  of  the  shadow  of  death,  without 
any  order,  and  where  the  light  is  as  darkness." 

Now,  Lord  Bacon  has  somewhere  said  that  "true 
fortitude  consists  in  not  letting  what  we  do  know  be 
disturbed  by  what  we  do  not  know."  And  he  speaks 
wisely ;  for  that  is  the  precise  thing  which  poor  hu- 
man nature  finds  most  difficult  to  accomplish.  Igno- 
rance proves  nothing  ;  but  our  outlook  is  full  of  name- 


VICTORY  OVER  DEATH.  41 

Fable  of  the  fagots.  Roman  epithets. 

less  horrors,  because  we  have  nothing  else  to  fill  it  with 
— outside  of  the  Bible. 

Next  to  this  comes  grief  :  *'  That  ye  sorrow  not,"  adds 
the  apostle.  Men  even  in  deepest  distress  cannot  be 
made  to  see  Death  as  a  friend.  In  the  old  fable  we  used 
to  read  at  school,  the  aged  woodman  fairly  grew  desper- 
ate as  he  cast  his  load  of  fagots  from  his  sore  shoulders  : 
*'  Sitting  down,  he  prayed  for  Death  to  come  to  his  re- 
lief." Suddenly  Death  did  come,  and  inquired  v/hat  he 
needed.  **  Nothing,"  answered  the  frightened  creature, 
bustling  up  on  his  feet  ;  *'  nothing,  only  to  have  some 
one  help  to  put  my  bundle  once  more  on  my  shoulder  !  " 

There  is  in  this  sorrow  a  sense  of  bereavement ;  we 
must  go  away  from  those  we  love.  The  Romans  had 
thirty  epithets  for  death  ;  and  all  of  them  were  full  of 
deepest  dejection.  "The  iron  slumber,"  "the  eternal 
night,"  "the  mower  with  his  scythe,"  "the  hunter  with 
his  snares,"  "the  demon  bearing  cup  of  poison,"  "  tlie 
merciless  destroying  angel,"  "  the  inexorable  jailer  with 
keys,"  "the  king  of  terrors  treading  down  empires," 
— some  of  them  were  these,  the  bitterness  of  which  is 
indescribable. 

Then  there  is  a  sense  of  laceration.  We  must  tear 
ourselves  away  from  the  hills  and  the  homes  that  know 
us.  The  more  we  have  cared  for  the  world,  the  more  it 
keeps  its  hold  upon  us.  There  is  a  sort  of  injured  feel- 
ing rankling  in  our  hearts,  as  if  somebody  had  cheated 
us  out  of  a  right,  or  deceived  us  in  a  prospect. 

Worst  of  all,  there  is  in  this  sorrow  a  sense  of  failure. 


42  VICTORY   OVER  DEATH. 

Hezekiah.  Socrates'  sacrifice. 

A  consciousness  of  unfinished  work,  of  incomplete  ac- 
complishment, is  filling  us  with  dissatisfaction.  It  hap- 
pens that  we  have  this  all  written  out  for  our  inspection 
under  inspiration  in  one  notable  instance  ;  it  is  worth 
reading  over  as  a  revelation  of  human  nature.  "  The 
writing  of  Hezekiah,  king  of  Judah,  when  he  had  been 
sick,  and  was  recovered  of  his  sickness  :  I  said,  in  the 
cutting  off  of  my  days,  I  shall  go  to  the  gates  of  the 
grave  ;  I  am  deprived  of  the  residue  of  my  years.  I 
said,  I  shall  not  see  the  Lord,  even  the  Lord,  in  the  land 
of  the  living  :  I  shall  behold  man  no  more  with  the  in- 
habitants of  the  world.  Mine  age  is  departed,  and  is 
removed  from  me  as  a  shepherd's  tent ;  I  have  cut  off 
like  a  weaver  my  life  ;  he  will  cut  me  off  with  pining 
sickness  ;  from  day  even  to  night  wilt  thou  make  an 
end  of  me.  I  reckoned  till  morning,  that  as  a  lion,  so 
will  he  break  all  my  bones  ;  from  day  even  to  night  wilt 
thou  make  an  end  of  me." 

The  third  element  of  popular  experience  which  the 
apostle  indicates  is  despair  :  **  I  would  not  have  you  as 
others  which  have  no  hope.'"  Here  now  enters  the  work- 
ing of  conscience.  At  this  point  there  is  apparent  a 
notion  of  guilt  :  **  The  sting  of  death  is  sin  ;  and  the 
strength  of  sin  is  the  law." 

Hence,  this  hopelessness  includes  a  Sense  of  ill-desert. 
No  man  is  free  from  it.  Even  wise  old  Socrates  sacri- 
ficed a  cock  for  an  offering  before  he  dared  to  die  ;  and 
he  was  what  we  call  a  sage  !  Scientific  men  keep  open- 
ing ancient  tombs  nov/adays  ;  and  it  is  astonishing  what 


VICTORY   OVER   DEATH.  43 

Inexorableness.  Hobbes'  confession. 

treasures  they  find — gifts  all  packed  up  for  the  departed 
creature  to  make  his  Avay  on  with  when  he  should  get 
into  immortal  necessities  of  explanation  and  apology  for 
a  misspent  life. 

There  is  also  a  sense  of  inexorable  justice.  Something 
mysteriously  forces  the  conviction  on  the  minds  of  us 
all,  that  there  is  one  court  in  this  universe  where  deci- 
sions are  rendered  in  accordance  with  facts  and  princi- 
ples of  law.  We  clap  our  hands  when  we  hear  a  popu- 
lar poet  sing  out  energetically,  ''Thank  God,  man  is 
not  to  be  judged  by  man  !  "  But  that  implies  that  he  is 
to  be  judged  by  God  ;  and  such  a  conclusion  brings  to 
most  men  an  uneasiness.  Solemn  moment  is  that  in 
which  any  soul  reaches  the  full  consciousness  of  ap- 
proaching arraignment  before  the  bar  of  Jehovah  ! 

There  is  in  this  hopelessness  also  a  sense  of  risk.  It 
will  interject  itself  into  all  our  computations,  this 
thought  of  something  left  unarranged  at  death.  I  can- 
not get  myself  ready.  I  am  not  master  of  the  position 
enough  to  know  w^hat  to  do  more.  There  are  perad- 
ventures  on  ahead  in  that  darkness  that  it  is  useless  for 
me  to  try  to  meet.  I  must  just  take  my  chances  as  I 
am.  The  last  words  of  one  of  the  most  courageous  of  all 
the  famous  infidels  that  have  been  watched  as  they  died, 
were,  ''  It  is  a  leap  in  the  dark  ! " 

This,  then,  is  the  popular  and  necessary  conception 
of  death,  up  to  that  last  great  moment  when  the  revela- 
tion which  the  New  Testament  furnishes  breaks  like 
beautiful  sunshine  through  the  unutterable  gloom.    Our 


44  VICTORY   OVER   DEATH. 

Jesus  to  Martha.  The  victory. 

Lord  Jesus  came  to  bring  life  and  immortality  to  light 
in  the  gospel.  So  the  trustful  believer  is  taught  to  sing, 
while  his  heart  is  swayed  by  the  hopes  of  another  life  in 
view : 

"  In  death,  peace  gently  veils  the  eyes ; 
Christ  rose,  and  I  shall  surely  rise." 

That  is  to  say,  into  this  confused  and  melancholy  state 
of  things  Christianity  enters  with  a  direct  challenge  and 
absolute  contradiction  of  reversal.  To  real  mourners 
there  is  only  left  a  single  comfort  that  v/ill  prove  satis- 
factory. Wq  may  reason  and  argue,  but  all  in  vain.  No 
assurance  about  its  being  better  for  the  friends  we  have 
lost  to  be  where  they  are :  no  chilly  philosophy  as  to 
manly  fortitude  or  womanly  endurance  :  no  professions 
of  sincere  sympathy  counseling  courage  —  nothing  is 
sufficient  for  our  terrible  bereavements,  except  the  calm 
declaration  :  *'  Thy  brother  shall  rise  again."  We  insist 
upon  the  certainty  that  some  time  wx  must  be  reunited 
to  the  hearts  we  regret  and  remember  with  our  tears. 

Just  there  the  Scripture  meets  us  positively  :  "  For  if 
w^e  believe  that  Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even  so  them 
also  which  sleep  in  Jesus  will  God  bring  with  him." 
We  cannot  take  away  death,  but  we  can  take  the  sting 
out  of  death.  We  must  enter  the  conflict  with  the  last 
enemy  :  ''  But  thanks  be  to  God,  which  giveth  us  the 
victory,  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ."  At  last  there 
comes  something  authoritative.  The-  moment  we  read 
a  verse  of  inspiration  like  these  we  are  studying,  we  feel 


VICTORY   OVER   DEATH.  4$ 

A  meteoric  stone-  The  cemetery. 

as  we  do  when  we  see  a  great  meteoric  stone — we  say 
this  is  a  piece  of  another  planet.  Just  mark  these  open- 
ing words  of  the  apostle  :  "  For  this  we  say  unto  you  by 
the  word  of  the  Lord,  that  we  which  are  alive  and  re- 
main unto  the  coming  of  the  Lord  shall  not  prevent 
them  which  are  asleep.  For  the  Lord  himself  shall  de- 
scend from  heaven  with  a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the 
archangel,  and  with  the  trump  of  God  :  and  the  dead  in 
Christ  shall  rise  first  :  then  we  which  are  alive  and  re- 
main shall  be  caught  up  together  with  them  in  the 
clouds,  to  meet  the  Lord  in  the  air:  and  so  shall  we 
ever  be  with  the  Lord.  Wherefore,  comfort  one  another 
with  these  words." 

So  much,  then,  **  by  the  word  of  the  Lord."  How  this 
covers  at  once  all  the  particulars  we  have  mentioned  ! 
This  lonely  spot  away  in  a  damp  graveyard  that  makes 
us  shudder — why,  it  is  only  a  cemetery,  after  all ;  and  a 
cemetei-y  is  a  sleeping-place.  We  shall  remain  in  it  only 
until  sunrise.  Then,  too,  this  sense  of  failure  in  life  ; 
Paul  says  there  is  no  mistake  or  loss  :  **  Therefore,  my 
beloved  brethren,  be  ye  steadfast,  unmovable,  always 
abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord,  forasmuch  as  ye 
know  that  your  labor  is  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord."  No 
labor  can  be  in  vain  which  has  God's  glory  for  its  end. 
So  of  the  nameless  and  indescribable  fears  that  make  us 
tremble  ;  this  revelation  of  divine  love  simply  takes  a 
lamp  and  bears  it  into  the  mysterious  shadows  ahead  of 
us,  as  a  mother  goes  on  before  into  a  bedroom  which 
her  timid  child  had  been  filling  with  weird  horrors.    Oh, 


46  VICTORY   OVER  DEATH. 

A  mother's  lamp.  Ships  coming  in. 

how  exquisite  is  that  description  of  the  New  Jerusalem, 
which  calls  it  '^  the  mother  of  us  all ! " 

The  sense  of  bereavement  is  banished  in  the  same 
way.  It  is  the  departed  who  are  safe.  Those  we  think 
we  once  lost  are  the  very  ones  we  have  most  securely. 
The  sense  of  despair  yields  to  the  blessed  certainty  of 
hope.  We  shall  find  our  old  friends  in  heaven  ;  we  shall 
know  them  when  we  see  them.  The  new  life  will  be 
occupied  partly  in  ''knitting  severed  friendships  up." 
And  as  for  that  awful  dread  of  divine  justice,  it  will  be 
displaced  by  a  wonderful  peace  ;  for  we  can  rest  im- 
plicitly in  God's  justice  when  Jesus  the  Saviour  stands 
by,  with  the  sure  pardon  in  his  hands ! 

It  is  according  to  one's  hearty  confidence  in  receiving 
this  information  that  he  will  look  forward  toward  the 
inevitable  crisis.  I  sometimes  think  that  people  will 
enter  heaven  as  the  miscellaneous  vessels  enter  New 
York  Bay  through  the  Narrows.  Some  will  actually 
have  to  be  tugged  in  by  the  violent  faith  and  prayer  of 
others,  who  will  be  at  hand  to  help  their  feebleness  as 
Christiana  helped  Ready-to-halt.  Some  will  come  in 
slowly  and  undecidedly,  as  if  they  dared  to  put  up  only 
a  sail  or  two,  and  the  wind  was  uncertain.  But  there 
will  be  many  proud,  glad  ships,  with  all  their  spars  cov- 
ered with  white  canvas.  To  them  will  be  ''  an  entrance 
ministered  abundantly  into  the  everlasting  kingdom  of 
our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

Very  beautiful,  therefore,  rises  this  picture  of  the 
apostle  upon  our  spiritual  vision,  and  very  inspiriting  is 


VICTORY   OVER   DEATH.  47 

Song  of  triumph.  "  In  the  morning." 

the  song  which  floats  through  the  air  as  we  look  at  it : 
**  So  when  this  corruptible  shall  have  put  on  incorrup- 
tion,  and  this  mortal  shall  have  put  on  immortality,  then 
shall  be  brought  to  pass  the  saying  that  is  written,  Death 
is  swallowed  up  in  victory.  O  death,  where  is  thy  sting  ? 
O  grave,  where  is  thy  victory  ? " 

"The  night  is  far  spent  ;  the  day  is  at  hand."  We 
have  as  yet  some  few  confusions,  for  the  twilight  shad- 
ows are  hanging  heavily  over  us  ;  but  it  will  all  be  right 
in  the  morning  : — 

*'  Thus  all  through  the  world,  by  ship  or  by  shore, 

Where  the  mother  bends  over  the  cradle. 
The  tenant  of  which  has  just  gone  on  before — 

Where  the  lonely  tread  on  in  the  ashes  of  woe — 
Where  the  brave  fight  their  foes  and  their  fears — 

Where  the  funeral  winds,  or  the  dirge  murmurs  low, — 
Where  the  eyes  of  the  lover,  through  dimness  and  tears, 

Look  aloft  for  the  loved — oh,  whatever  the  word, 
A  welcome,  a  wail,  or  a  warning. 

This  is  everywhere  cherished,  this  everywhere  heard — 
*  It  %vill  all  be  right  in  the  morning  I ' " 


V. 

AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

Now  THEN  WE  ARE  AMBASSADORS  FOR  CHRIST,  AS  THOUGH  GOD 
DID  BESEECH  YOU  BY  US:  WE  PRAY  YOU  IN  CHRIST'S  STEAD, 
BE  YE  RECONCILED  TO  GoD.— 2  Corhithians  S  :  20. 

A  SINGLE  incident  of  the  visit  of  Mr.  Moody  to  New 
York  came  to  my  knowledge  at  the  time.  I  give  it  in 
substance  as  related  to  me  by  one  of  the  parties  men- 
tioned in  it ;    I  think  it  is  quite  true. 

It  seems  that  a  gentleman,  accustomed  to  attend  the 
great  assemblies  at  the  Hippodrome,  had  invited  one  of 
his  business  associates  to  go  with  him  to  the  meeting, 
and  hear  the  evangelist  speak.  After  the  service  was 
over,  on  the  way  home,  he  inquired  of  him  how  he 
liked  the  sermon.  The  answer  v/as  all  he  could  have 
wished. 

*'  I  believe,"  said  the  man,  with  his  manner  full  of  un- 
mistakable enthusiasm,  ''that,  if  the  regular  ministers 
would  preach  as  that  Moody  does,  they  would  have 
half  the  town  running  after  them  !  It  is  grand  to  lis- 
ten to  the  voice  of  such  a  representative  of  the  peo- 
ple, no  matter  if  he  is  ignorant  and  uneducated.  But 
in  the  churches,  the  big  scholars  get  up,  and  they  are 
so  stiff  and  so  starched  and  so  cold  that  there  is  no 
use  in  going  to  hear  them." 


AN    ORDAINED   MINISTRY.  49 

HippoJrome  meetings.  Mistaken  identity. 

Surprised  at  such  an  amount  of  information  concern- 
ing the  habits  of  metropolitan  clergymen  on  the  part  of 
one  who,  as  he  supposed,  rarely  saw  any  one  of  them  to 
know  him,  my  informant  inquired  calmly,  '*  Where  do 
you  usually  attend  church  ? "  And  the  reply  came  as 
he  expected,  **  Oh,  I  am  one  of  the  outsiders,  as  you 
call  them  ;  I  have  not  been  in  a  pew  for  many  a  year." 
But  then  he  went  on  to  say  that  he  respected  religion, 
and  all  that ;   he  rented  a  sitting  for  his  wife  in  the 

church   on   the   corner  of  Street   and Place. 

*' But,  why  do  you  never  go  with  her?"  persisted  his 
friend.  *'  Because,  as  I  said,  they  are  all  so  prosy 
and  stiff ;  if  I  knew  a  minister  in  this  town  who  could 
preach  a  sermon  like  that  we  heard  just  now,  I  would 
go  five  miles  every  Sunday  to  listen  to  him  ! " 

More  amused  than  amazed,  his  companion  turned  on 
him  with  a  single  quiet  remark  :  "Well,  then,  you  had 
better  try  it  next  Sunday ;  for  Mr.  Moody  was  away 
to-day,   and  the   man  you    heard    in    the    Hippodrome 

v/as  your  wife's  pastor.  Rev.  Dr.  B •,  of  the  church 

on  the  corner  of Street  and Place." 

I.  Let  us  consider,  in  the  first  place,  one  special 
phase  of  popular  sentiment,  plainly  observable  at  the 
present  day,  and  which,  we  are  all  agreed,  deserves  a 
somewhat  thoughtful  notice. 

There  is  a  clamor  in  the  street  for  more  ''gospel" 
work  among  the  ''masses"  of  people  hitherto  quite 
imperfectly  reached  by  usual  forms  of  Christian  zeal. 
This  is  right :  no  one  can  doubt  it.     A  sad  record  has 

3 


50  AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

Reaching  the  "  masses."  Criticisms  on  the  clergy. 

been  written  on  God's  book  against  all  the  churches 
for  many  a  year.  Then  it  is  added  that  extraordinary 
methods  must  be  employed,  of  a  more  popular  char- 
acter, in  order  to  interest  the  homeless  multitudes, 
the  wild,  the  vicious,  and  the  poor.  Most  likely  this 
is  right  too  :  Christians  ought  to  be  all  things  to  all 
men,  in  the  hope  to  save  some.  And  then  there  is 
heard  around  us  a  serious  arraignment  of  ministers  as 
a  class,  for  Vv^hat  is  deemed  the  ill-adaptation  of  their 
measures ;  the  stiff,  stately,  scholarly  system  of  ser- 
monizing, inappropriate  and  unattractive  and  unsuc- 
cessful. Well :  it  is  not  worth  while  here  to  deny 
this  either.  I  presume  most  preachers  feel  somewhat 
demoralized,  when  they  have  to  own  that  few  have 
believed  their  report,  and  few  are  found  to  whom  the 
arm  of  the  Lord  has  been  revealed  savingly. 

But  now  comes  the  suggestion  of  a  remedy.  And  at 
this  proposal  one  may  be  pardoned  if  he  experiences 
a  measure  of  consternation.  It  is  claimed  that  the 
preachers  must  come  forth  from  among  the  people, 
and  must  be  of  the  people.  Hence  education  has 
not  so  much  to  do  with  v/inning  souls  as  sympathy; 
less  heads  and  more  hearts  are  the  demand  of  this 
age.  Scholarship  renders  men  too  refined  for  rough 
work.  Then,  too,  denominationalism  gets  badly  in 
the  way.  And,  not  to  put  too  fine  a  point  upon  it,  it 
has  come  to  be  better  to  have  lay-preachers  rather  than 
ordained. 

It  is  curious  to  notice  hov/  spiritual  epidemics  become 


AN   ORDAINED    MINISTRY.  $1 

Spiritual  epidemics.  The  ministerial  office. 

prevalent,  at  times,  just  like  diseases.  Only  a  few  years 
ago,  the  great  cry  was  raised  against  cherishing  an  in- 
spired authoritative  volume  as  being  only  a  superstition. 
The  taunt  was  flung  widely  over  most  of  Christendom, 
that  it  was  weak  and  unscholarly  to  believe  such  a  be- 
ing as  God  would  issue  a  printed  gospel :  would  you 
put  confidence  in  a  book-revelation  ?  This  talk  was 
leading  unthinking  individuals  here  and  there  quite  as- 
tray. It  became  necessary  that  it  should  be  taken  up. 
The  pulpits  everywhere  accepted  the  challenge.  Men 
clung  to  their  Bibles,  and  frankly  told  their  reason  for 
so  doing.  God  gave  them  the  Book.  Whether  some 
would  think  he  would  or  not,  he  did — and  that  was  the 
end  of  debate.  There  were  champions  v/ho  did  such 
valiant  service  in  those  days  that  a  scriptural  literature 
was  created,  of  inestimable  value.  And  in  our  times, 
nobody  raises  that  question.  But  after  fifteen  years, 
a  new  agitation  has  arisen  ;  and  now  wc  have  to  be- 
gin at  the  beginning,  and  construct  an  argument  for  the 
existence  of  an  organic  official  ministry  in  the  church 
of  Christ— a  thing  which  the  church  never  has  been 
without  in  eighteen  centuries  of  life  ! 

II.  We  need  not  lose  any  time.  Let  us  now,  in  the 
second  place,  move  right  on  into  the  midst  of  the  sub- 
ject. What  are  to  be  understood  as  the  foundations 
upon  which  rests  the  office  of  an  ordained  ministry  in 
the  church  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ? 

The  answer  to  this  question  is  really  so  prosaic  and 
commonplace  that  one  may  possibly   be   surprised  to 


52  AN   ORDAINED    MINISTRY. 

The  argument.  The  original  promise. 

hear  it.  Nothing  of  human  wisdom  or  adroit  reasoning 
is  demanded  at  all.  Nothing  ingenious  or  novel  can  be 
of  even  the  least  sei'vice  in  such  an  inquiry.  The  in- 
spired word  declares  :  "For  after  that,  in  the  wisdom 
of  God,  the  world  by  wisdom  knew  not  God,  it  pleased 
God  by  the  foolishness  of  preaching  to  save  them  that 
believe."  The  sovereign  will  of  almighty  God  himself 
established  an  ordained  ministry  as  the  one  instrumen- 
tality by  which  the  gospel  might  be  proclaimed  among 
men.  The  preacher's  office,  therefore,  is  of  divine  and 
inalienable  right.  This  it  is  our  duty  to  assert  again 
and  again,  whether  men  will  hear  or  forbear.  The 
young  Titus  was  told  that  he  must  duly  urge  the  doc- 
trine :  "  These  things  speak,  and  exhort ;  and  rebuke 
with  all  authority.     Let  no  man  despise  thee." 

There  was  an  original  promise  made  to  God's  people, 
and  put  on  the  eternal  record  :  *'And  I  will  give  you 
pastors  according  to  mine  heart,  which  shall  feed  you 
with  knowledge  and  understanding."  Has  that  engage- 
ment ever  been  fulfilled  ?  Hear  the  word  again  :  ''And 
he  gave  some,  apostles  ;  and  some,  prophets  ;  and  some, 
evangelists  ;  and  some,  pastors  and  teachers ;  for  the 
perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the  work  of  the  ministry, 
for  the  edifying  of  the  body  of  Christ,  till  we  all  come 
in  the  unity  of  the  faith,  and  of  the  knowledge  of  the 
Son  of  God,  unto  a  perfect  man,  unto  the  measure  of 
the  stature  of  the  fulness  of  Christ." 

Let  us  come  away  for  a  moment  from  simple  citation 
of  texts.     It  happens  that  this  whole  matter  lies  before 


AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY.  53 

Isaiah's  vision.  Government  service. 

US  in  an  exquisite  picture,  Isaiah's  vision  of  the  Lord 
throned  in  the  temple.  The  majestic  form  of  Jehovah 
is  suddenly  withdrawn  out  of  sight,  and  the  kneeling 
man  hears  a  voice  :  **  Whom  shall  I  send,  and  who  will 
go  for  us  ?  "  Surely,  we  understand  that  this  figurative 
representation  is  of  our  Maker  considering  what  agency 
will  be  the  fittest  for  him  to  make  use  of  in  spreading 
his  messages  of  reconciliation  through  the  whole  world. 
One  would  shrink  from  so  daring  a  conception,  even  in 
rhetoric,  if  it  were  his  own  ;  but  here  it  is  in  the  Bible, 
and  it  is  singularly  picturesque  and  graphic. 

It  is  generally  easy  enough  to  find  men  who  are 
willing  to  undertake  government  service.  Not  often 
does  an  office  go  a-begging.  And  the  more  august  and 
powerful  the  empire,  the  likelier  it  would  be  to  find 
ready  agents.  Foreign  ministers  throng  most  ante- 
chambers at  the  slightest  call.  Christ's  ministers  of 
higher  class  seem  to  come  reluctantly  and  offer  them- 
selves not  often.  Really,  it  appears  a  little  singular  to 
note  here  that  God  is  represented  as  inquiring  doubt- 
fully after  somebody  to  be  a  prophet. 

This  could  not  have  been  through  any  caprice  :  there 
is  not  the  least  suggestion  of  trifling  in  scenes  so  august 
and  awful.  Nor  was  the  question  a  mere  form,  as  if 
the  king  were  keeping  up  a  share  in  the  dialogue  of  a 
pageant  :o  Isaiah  treats  it  like  a  real  demand,  and  an- 
swers it  at  a  tremendous  risk.  Nor  docs  it  seem  at 
all  likely  that  it  was  asked  in  weakness  or  irresolu- 
tion :  surely,  tlic  Lord  of  Heaven  could  choose  his  scr- 


54  AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

Meaning  of  the  question.  '■*.  Voluntary  life-work. 

vants  at  his  will.  lie  cannot  have  inquired  in  igno- 
rance, either :  he  knew  who  was  going  to  offer,  and 
w^hom  he  was  certain  to  accept  in  due  time. 

There  was  a  deep  and  wise  purpose  of  grace  in  such 
a  question.  We  shall  miss  the  entire  point  of  it  if  we 
fail  to  see  that  its  aim  was  to  draw  an  affectionate 
and  voluntary  proffer  of  life-service  from  that  sub- 
dued man,  just  forgiven  his  sins  under  the  atoning 
touch  of  the  coal  from  the  altar  of  sacrifice.  We  ex- 
pect that  very  answer  which  is  recorded  from  the 
grateful  Isaiah:  "Here  am  I;  send  me."  That  is  to 
say,  the  brilliant,  picturesque  teaching  of  an  inspired 
spectacle  like  this  is  discovered  in  these  two  particu- 
lars :  God  deliberately  chooses  men  for  his  special  mes- 
sengers to  all  the  world,  and  he  secures  the  labor  he 
wishes  by  inviting  a  voluntary  consecration  rather  than 
by  commanding  obedience. 

Really,  this  is  the  entire  argument  for  a  fixed  office 
of  ordained  ministers  in  the  church  of  the  living  God. 
But  is  it  not  conclusive  ?  Is  this  not  the  sense  of  the 
passage  which  v/e  are  now  studying  in  Paul's  epistle 
to  the  Corinthians  ?  Let  us  read  it  over :  *'  And  all 
things  are  of  God,  who  hath  reconciled  us  to  himself 
by  Jesus  Christ,  and  hath  given  to  us  the  ministry  of 
reconciliation ;  to  wit,  that  God  was  in  Christ,  recon- 
ciling the  world  unto  himself,  not  imputing  their  tres- 
passes unto  them  ;  and  hath  committed  unto  us  the 
word  of  reconciliation.  Now  then  we  are  ambassa- 
dors  for  Christ ;   as  though  God  did  beseech  you  by 


AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY.  55 

*'  Ambassadors  for  Christ."  Must  be  "  sent." 

US,  we  pray  you  in  Christ's  stead,  be  ye  reconciled  to 
God." 

It  only  remains,  therefore,  to  inquire  concerning  the 
perpetuation  of  the  office  by  the  churches  themselves. 
A  single  passage  of  Scripture  is  all  that  is  needed  to 
set  this  matter  at  rest :  '*  For  whosoever  shall  call 
upon  the  name  of  the  Lord  shall  be  saved.  Hov/ 
then  shall  they  call  on  him  in  whom  they  have  not 
believed?  and  how  shall  they  believe  in  him  of  whom 
they  have  not  heard  ?  and  how  shall  they  hear  with- 
out a  preacher?  And  how  shall  they  preach,  except 
they  be  sent  ?  as  it  is  written.  How  beautiful  are  the 
feet  of  them  that  preach  the  gospel  of  peace,  and 
bring  glad  tidings  of  good  things  !  " 

The  cumulative  argument  in  these  verses  moves  on 
step  by  step.  A  broad  announcement  of  the  gospel's 
adaptation  and  entire  sufficiency  for  all  classes  and 
conditions  of  men  is  given  at  the  outset:  "For  who- 
soever shall  call  upon  the  nam^e  of  the  Lord  shall  be 
saved."  But  here  the  apostle  meets  several  serious 
difficulties  lying  in  the  way.  To  such  he  gives  much 
rhetorical  force  by  stating  them  in  the  form  of  a  ques- 
tion :  "  How  then  shall  they  call  on  him  in  whom 
they  have  not  believed  ? "  Prayer  is  necessary  to  sal- 
vation, and  faith  is  necessary  to  prayer.  So  another 
perplexity  confronts  him  :  ''How  shall  they  believe  in 
him  of  whom  they  have  not  heard  ? "  Prayer  is  ne- 
cessary to  salvation  ;  faith  is  necessary  to  prayer ; 
knowledge   is   necessary   to   faith.     So   comes   another 


56  AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

The  church  must  provide.  What  is  ordination  ? 

hindrance  :  *'  How  shall  they  hear  without  a  preach- 
er?" A  man  cannot  know  a  new  thing  unless  some- 
body tells  him  ;  and  if  he  does  not  know  about  Christ, 
he  cannot  believe  in  him  ;  and  then  if  he  does  not  be- 
lieve, he  cannot  pray  for  help,  and  so  he  will  eventually 
be  lost.  Hence,  there  starts  up  this  closing  question  : 
**How  can  they  preach,  except  they  be  sent?"  So 
Paul  rounds  his  argument,  clinching  it  with  a  text 
from  Isaiah,  in  w^hich  the  Old  Testament  lifts  its  voice 
joyously  to  give  full  confirmation  to  the  New :  *'  How 
beautiful  upon  the  mountains  are  the  feet  of  him 
that  bringcth  good  tidings,  that  publisheth  peace ; 
that  bringcth  good  tidings  of  good  ;  that  publisheth 
salvation  ;  that  saith  unto  Zion,  Thy  God  reigneth ! " 

The  bearing  of  all  this  is  perfectly  clear.  The 
church  is  bound  to  raise  up,  to  educate,  to  commis- 
sion, to  ordain,  and  to  support  an  official  class  of 
preachers,  in  order  that  God's  plan  shall  be  carried 
out  for  all  nations  and  for  all  times. 

But  what  is  ordination  ?  The  ceremony  of  setting 
apart  the  ministers  whom  the  Spirit  of  God  invites 
and  impresses  into  the  work  is,  certainly  in  a  truly 
Protestant  church,  exceedingly  simple.  In  significa- 
tion, it  is  nothing  but  our  public  recognition  of  what 
we  believe  God  has  done  beforehand  in. choosing  the 
man. 

Our  authority  for  the  imposition  of  hands,  with  which 
the  impressive  ceremony  is  generally  attended,  is  easily 
traced  to  the  inspired  Scriptures.     One  familiar  verse  is 


AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY.  57 

Imposition  of  hands.  The  present  demand. 

enough  to  quote  here  :  the  young  Timothy,  just  ordained 
and  sent  out  to  his  work,  finds  among  the  weighty  coun- 
sels of  the  apostle  addressed  to  him  one  calculated  to 
keep  his  office  before  him  :  *'  Neglect  not  the  gift  that 
is  in  thee,  which  was  given  thee  by  prophecy,  with  the 
laying  on  of  the  hands  of  the  presbytery."  We  do  not 
profess  to  communicate  anything,  when  we  lay  our 
hands  upon  a  candidate's  head.  It  is  a  mere  gesture  to 
show  whom  we  intend  to  set  apart  to  a  professional  call- 
ing as  a  preacher.  Christ  gives  him  all  he  has  of  heav- 
enly grace,  not  man,  nor  the  church. 

It  seems  clear  that  there  could  be  no  question  con- 
cerning this  general  doctrine  of  the  ministry,  which  is 
as  old  as  is  the  church  itself,  if  our  decisions  were  not 
complicated  by  some  particular  presentations  of  just 
our  times.  Evangelists,  nowadays,  demand  that  they 
shall  be  received  and  v/elcomed  among  the  churches 
ivitJiout  ordination.  They  shall  be  permitted  to  preach, 
and  even  administer  sacraments,  independent  of  all  set- 
ting apart  to  a  fixed  office.  This  is  new.  Nettleton, 
and  Kirk,  and  Finney,  were  all  regularly  ordained 
clergymen.  Audiences  at  large  did  not  find  any  fault 
with  their  *' cloth."  We  have  had  in  our  communities 
several  of  the  best  Christian  workers  the  world  ever 
knew — men  whom  we  all  alike  honor  and  love — men 
Avhom  God  has  wonderfully  blessed  as  evangelists. 
They  peril  great  interests  when  they  demand  that  we 
shall  accept  them  without  ordination  to  the  sacred  office. 
They  arc  the  ones  to  make  the  issue.  Some  of  us  are 
3* 


58  AN  ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

Lay-preachers.  "Gospel"  mass-meetings. 

ready  to  join  the  issue  with  them.  We  assert  that  it  is 
not  safe  or  fair  or  scriptural  to  argue  from  their  pros- 
perous career  that  ordination  is  prejudicial,  or  that  lay- 
preachers  would  be  better  to  man  our  missions. 

For  we  insist  that  it  would  be  better  all  around  if 
these  noble  coadjutors  were  ordained  in  the  orderly 
•way,  as  Barnabas  and  Timothy  were  in  the  primitive 
history  when  they  began  to  preach. 

Nor  should  we  be  candid  if  we  did  not  admit  that  we 
go  even  further.  We  do  not  believe  that  the  mass-meet- 
ing system  is  the  best  for  converting  souls,  and  retain- 
ing those  who  are  apparently  gathered.  Some  of  us 
distrust  this  whole  plan  of  promiscuous  assemblies  in 
^'gospel"  services,  with  laymen  giving  *' Bible-read- 
ings," as  flinging  reproach  upon  the  churches.  Is  there 
no  gospel  anywhere  but  in  them  ?  Is  the  Bible  read 
anyv/here  else  ?  Will  the  man  go  and  hear  his  wife's 
pastor  once  in  his  own  pulpit,  before  he  pronounces 
upon  him  in  the  Hippodrome  ? 

Christ  loved  the  church,  and  Christ  established  the 
church,  and  Christ  gave  himself  for  the  church,  which 
is  his  body,  the  fulness  of  him  that  filleth  all  in  all. 
When  any  association  undertakes  to  compete  with  the 
church's  organization  as  an  instrument  for  saving,  train- 
ing, educating,  and  retaining  souls  of  men,  a  decent 
word  ought  to  be  spoken  in  warning  against  putting 
human  wisdom  in  conflict  w^ith  that  which  is  inspired 
and  divine. 

But  are  all  the  churches  what  they  should  be  ?     Oh, 


AN   ORDAINED    MINISTRY.  59 

The  churches  fastidious.  Halls  are  free. 

no  !  no  !  Some  of  our  buildings  are  too  fine  and  costly. 
Some  of  our  services  are  too  turgid  and  swollen  with 
fashionable  parade  :  on  rare  Sundays  they  are  nothing 
but  concerts  with  programmes.  Some  of  us  in  the 
pulpit  are  dull  and  dry.  Our  sermons  are  scholarly 
and  philosophical.  Our  machinery  all  around  is  too 
elegantly  fitted  to  the  taste  of  only  fastidious  people. 
We  have  too  little  sympathy  for  the  poor  and  the 
humble.  Oh,  how  pitiful  are  the  confessions  many 
of  us  are  ready  conscientiously  and  sorrowfully  to 
make  ! 

But  the  remedy  is  not  found  in  calling  the  church 
Laodicean,  and  declaring  that  ''the  Lord  has  already 
spcv/ed  it  out  of  his  mouth."  Perhaps,  if  our  brethren 
will  keep  their  confidence  for  a  little  while  longer,  there 
can  be  a  change.  Let  us  read  over  together  one  verse 
more,  before  we  part  company  just  now  :  *'  For  unto  us 
was  the  gospel  preached,  as  well  as  unto  them  :  but  the 
w^ord  preached  did  not  profit  them,  not  being  mixed 
with  faith  in  them  that  heard  it." 

Why  are  some  of  the  churches  thinly  attended,  while 
the  public  halls  are  filled  ?  Because  Christians  will 
generously  pay  for  the  rent  of  halls  so  as  to  make  them 
free  to  everybody,  while  they  decline  to  let  poor  people 
even  sit  in  their  church  pews  v/hen  unable  to  make  up 
the  rent.  Is  it  because  the  gospel  is  not  preached  unto 
us  as  well  as  unto  them  ?  Are  we  all  ready  to  assert  that 
the  truth  of  God  is  presented  in  our  Christian  pulpits- 
less  intelligently  than  it  is  outside  of  them  ?     Less  Intel- 


Co  AN   ORDAINED   MINISTRY. 

Is  the  gospel  preached  ?  Not  "  mixed  with  faith." 

ligibly  ?  less  faithfully  ?  less  courageously  ?  less  spirit- 
ually ? 

Why  does  not  the  word  profit,  then  ?  The  verse  says, 
because  it  is  not  ''mixed  with  faith."  Whose  faith? 
The  faith  of  "  them  that  /lear  it."  People  have  become 
used  to  the  emotional  excitement  of  a  promiscuous 
throng  singing  ''pull  for  the  shore,"  until  they  say  their 
own  public  meetings  are  dull  and  spiritless.  They  seem 
to  have  no  expectation  that  good  can  be  done  in  quiet 
ways  in  their  old  lecture-rooms.  Some  church-members 
lack  faith  in  all  ordinary  means  of  grace.  They  seem 
to  think  nothing  can  be  done  by  the  established  methods, 
or  in  the  home  localities.  Another  kind  of  sermons, 
another  sort  of  hymn-books,  another  form  of  machinery, 
must  be  brought  forward.  They  are  not  content  to  rest 
in  quiet  working.     So  the  ways  of  Zion  mourn. 

Let  us  have  done  with  recrimination,  and  divide  the 
sorrow  and  shame,  if  such  there  be,  while  we  begin  once 
more  to  believe  in  the  profitableness  of  God's  plan.  Is 
it  too  much  to  ask  that  some  affectionate  and  honest 
words  of  deprecation  may  be  heard,  just  for  once  ? 
Less  seeking  of  novelties,  and  more  fnisf  in  the  means 
we  have,  might,  perhaps,  bring  in  an  increase  of  good. 


VI. 

THE   CHRISTIAN  ARMOR. 

Put  on  the  whole  armor   of  God,  that  ye  may  be  able  to 

STAND  against   THE   WILES   OF  THE   DEVIL. — EphesiattS  6:  11. 

It  might  be  conjectured  that  one,  who  for  a  long  time 
was  accustomed  to  wear  a  chain  binding  his  wrist  to  the 
wrist  of  a  soldier  of  the  Roman  army,  and  so  was  kept 
in  the  constant  companionship  and  observation  of  a  man 
in  full  military  dress — it  might  be  conjectured  that  such 
an  one,  when  fashioning  a  formal  letter  by  an  amanuen- 
sis, would  become  figurative  on  occasion,  and  introduce 
what  he  saw  into  what  he  wrote.  So  the  peculiar  vivid- 
ness of  description,  and  the  particularity  of  detail,  which 
w^e  meet  in  the  famous  passage  of  Paul's  epistle  to  the 
Ephesians,  would  find  easy  explanation  from  his  impris- 
onment. 

I.  It  begins  with  a  call  to  arms — a  ringing  challenge 
to  soldierly  bearing  and  courageous  exploit :  ''  Finally, 
my  brethren,  be  strong  in  the  Lord,  and  in  the  power  of 
his  might." 

Religious  life  is  sometimes  called  ''peace  in  believ- 
ing." Christ  bids  souls  to  come  unto  him  that  they 
might  find  ''rest."  All  this  has  a  welcome  and  an  in- 
telligible meaning.  But  surely  that  Christian  will  make 
a  vast  mistake  who  forces  such  comforting  expressions 


62  THE   CHRISTIAN  ARMOR. 

A  conquered  peace.  Thomas  Campbell. 

as  these  into  undue  and  strange  employment.  There 
is  nowhere  in  this  world  any  peace  which  has  not  been 
wrought  out  in  stubborn  conflict,  which  is  not  now  the 
achievement  of  valiant  service  for  the  truth.  The  sol- 
diers of  the  cross  do  not  enlist  to  go  at  once  into  the 
hospital,  or  sit  around  the  door  of  a  sutler's  tent. 

Hence  our  Lord  puts  in  his  well-known  and  often- 
quoted  warning  to  all  those  who  start  to  follow  him  that 
they  shall  intelligently  understand,  and  then  deliberately 
decide,  what  to  do  :  ''What  king,  going  to  make  w^ar 
against  another  king,  sitteth  not  down  first,  and  consult- 
cth  Avhether  he  be  able  v^^ith  ten  thousand  to  meet  him 
that  cometh  against  him  w^ith  twenty  thousand  ?  Or 
else,  while  the  other  is  yet  a  great  v\^ay  off,  he  sendeth 
an  ambassage,  and  desireth  conditions  of  peace.  So 
likewise,  whosoever  he  be  of  you  that  forsaketh  not  all 
that  he  hath,  he  cannot  be  my  disciple." 

It  is  to  be  feared  that  too  much  stress  is  laid  upon  the 
emotional  and  experimental  part  of  piety  in  this  easy 
day  of  ours.  Too  many  young  princes  go  off  into  dan- 
gerous Zulu-land  for  curious  inquiry  or  mere  love  of 
adventure.  There  was  (so  Ave  are  told)  once  an  English 
poet,  who  took  position  in  a  lofty  tower  that  he  might 
sec  a  real  battle.  He  seems  to  have  had  great  prosper- 
ity, for  the  Avorld  has  not  yet  done  praising  his  versified 
description  of  the  rushing  onset,  the  tumult,  and  the 
carnage,  "by  Iser  rolling  rapidly."  Now  nobody  need 
hope  to  become  acquainted  with  the  solemn  realities  of 
life  by  merely  gazing  out  upon  it  from  a  protected  bel- 


THE   CHRISTIAN   ARMOR.  6^ 

Ignatius  Loyola.  Zechariah's  vision. 

fry,  as  Campbell  did  on  Hohenlinden  field.  We  cannot 
make  a  poem  out  of  it.  There  are  awfid  certainties  of 
exposure,  and  necessities  of  attack,  which  disdain  figures 
and  rhythms  of  mere  music.  And,  moreover,  we  are 
combatants,  not  spectators  ;  we  are  in  the  onset,  and  the 
shock  is  at  hand.     ''  There  is  no  discharge  in  that  war." 

2.  It  is  best  to  avoid  all  confusion  at  once,  and  ascer- 
tain who  are  our  adversaries  ;  specially,  who  leads  on 
the  host.  Here  the  apostle  speaks  clearly,  if  only  peo- 
ple would  listen  :  *'  Put  on  the  whole  armor  of  God,  that 
ye  may  be  able  to  stand  against  the  wiles  of  the  devil." 

*' Two  kingdoms,"  said  Ignatius  Loyola,  ''divide  the 
v/orld  ;  the  kingdom  of  Immanuel,  and  the  kingdom  of 
Satan."  This  the  whole  Bible  admits  ;  but  nowhere  can 
there  be  found  even  so  much  as  one  text  which  intimates 
that  Christ  and  the  devil  are  on  equal  terms.  Satan  is 
a  created  being  ;  he  had  a  maker,  and  he  now  has  a  ruler. 
He  wages  at  present  only  a  permitted  warfare  for  a  lim- 
ited season.  His  onsets  arc  well  called  "wiles,"  for  he 
shuns  open  fields,  and  deals  best  in  ambuscades  and  se- 
cret plots.  "  Satan  himself  is  transformed  into  an  angel 
of  light." 

Next  to  that  recorded  picture  in  the  opening  of  the 
Book  of  Job,  perhaps  the  most  graphic  which  we  find  in 
the  Scriptures  is  that  of  the  prophet  Zechariah  :  "And 
he  showed  me  Joshua  the  high  priest  standing  before  the 
angel  of  the  Lord,  and  Satan  standing  at  his  right  hand 
to  resist  him.  And  the  Lord  said  unto  Satan,  The  Lord 
rebuke  thee,  O  Satan  ;  even  the  Lord  that  hath  chosen 


64  THE   CHRISTIAN   ARMOR. 

A  court-martial.  Our  adversaries. 

Jerusalem  rebuke  thee  :  is  not  this  a  brand  plucked  out 
of  the  fire  ?  "  Just  as  in  a  court-martial,  two  men  appear 
in  order  to  manage  a  suit  after  quick  arrest  of  some  de- 
relict subaltern,  so  here  a  poor  accused  being  seems  to 
be  put  on  trial.  A  divine  advocate — even  Jesus  Christ 
the  righteous,  the  true  historic  angel  of  the  Lord — labors 
to  defend  him  ;  while  another,  the  accuser  of  his  breth- 
ren, is  allowed  to  hinder  and  interrupt,  springing  tech- 
nicalities in  the  way  of  progress,  wresting  the  evidence, 
pleading  false  issues,  suborning  witnesses,  tampering 
with  testimony,  mutilating  records,  disturbing  the  tribu- 
nal with  vociferous  objections,  until  the  presiding  judge 
will  bear  it  no  longer,  but  in  true  commiseration  for 
the  culprit  bursts  out,  **  The  Lord  rebuke  thee,  O 
Satan  ! " 

It  would  seem  as  if  the  careful  apostle  had  been 
afraid  that  his  military  language  might  be  construed 
literally  ;  for  he  adds  a  word  of  warning,  lest  any  one 
should  suppose  that  the  faith  which  Christ  came  to  es- 
tablish should  be  propagated  by  force  of  arms  :  ''  For 
we  wrestle  not  against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against 
principalities,  against  powers,  against  the  rulers  of  the 
darkness  of  this  world,  against  spiritual  wickedness  in 
high  places."  And  in  another  chapter  he  gives  a  hint 
from  the  opposite  direction  ;  if  our  foes*  are  spiritual, 
then  our  resistance  is  to  be  spiritual  also  :  *'  The  weapons 
of  our  warfare  are  not  carnal,  but  mighty  through 
God,  to  the  pulling  down  of  strongholds  ;  casting  down 
imaginations,  and  every  high  thing  that  cxaltcth  itself 


THE   CHRISTIAN   ARMOR.  6$ 

The  devil's  angels.  A  man  tempted. 

against  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  bringing  into  capti- 
vity every  thought  to  the  obedience  of  Christ." 

There  is  awful  force  in  the  expression,  *Hhe  devil 
and  his  angels  ; "  for  it  shows  us  Satan  is  not  alone  in 
his  v/ork.  He  is  the  prince  fiend  of  a  fiendish  clan.  I 
have  somewhere  seen  a  picture  on  which  was  repre- 
sented a  human  soul  in  its  hour  of  conflict  It  was 
as  if  the  invisible  world  had  for  a  moment  been  made 
visible  by  the  rare  skill  of  the  artist.  There,  around 
the  tried  and  anxious  man,  these  emissaries  of  Satan 
were  gathered.  Dim,  ethereal  forms  luridly  shone  out 
on  every  side.  One  might  see  the  tempting  offer  of  a 
crown  over  his  head  ;  but  he  w^ould  have  to  examine 
quite  closely  before  he  could  discover  how  each  braided 
bar  of  gold  in  the  diadem  was  twined  in  so  as  to  con- 
ceal a  lurking  fiend  in  the  folds.  Then  there  was  just 
visible  a  serpent  with  demoniac  eyes  coiled  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  goblet  from  w^hich  he  was  invited  to  drink. 
Foul  whispers  were  plying  either  ear.  There  were 
baleful  fires  of  lust  in  the  glances  of  those  who  sought 
his  companionship.  A  beautiful  angel  drew  nigh ;  but 
a  skeleton  of  death  could  be  traced  beneath  the  white 
robes  he  had  stolen.  I  cannot  say  it  was  a  welcome 
picture  ;  but  certainly  there  was  a  lesson  in  it.  Among 
the  noisy  critics  who  gaily  pronounced  on  its  character- 
istics, I  noticed  there  was  one  thoughtful  man  who 
turned  aside  and  wept.  Perhaps  he  knew  what  it 
meant. 

3.   Is  there  no  defence  against  all  this  ?     Surely,  every 


66  THE   CHRISTIAN  ARMOR. 

IMilitary  accoutrements.  ■  The  Palace  Beautiful. 

Christian  remembers  the  armor  which  Paul  catalogues 
in  detail:  "Wherefore  take  unto  you  the  whole  armor 
of  God,  that  ye  may  be  able  to  withstand  in  the  evil 
day,  and  having  done  all,  to  stand.  Stand,  therefore, 
having  your  loins  girt  about  with  truth,  and  having  on 
the  breastplate  of  righteousness  ;  and  your  feet  shod 
with  the  preparation  of  the  gospel  of  peace ;  and 
above  all,  taking  the  shield  of  faith,  wherewith  ye 
shall  be  able  to  quench  all  the  fiery  darts  of  the  wicked. 
And  take  the  helmet  of  salvation,  and  the  sword  of  the 
Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of  God." 

So  picturesque  is  this  exhortation  that  one  could  al- 
most believe  that  Paul  simply  ran  his  eyes  over  the 
military  man  at  his  side,  and  told  his  amanuensis  to 
spiritualize  the  articles  of  his  equipment.  For  every 
one  now  knows  that  this  whole  list  of  shield  and  shoes, 
girdle  and  breastplate,  helmet  and  sword,  may  be,  in 
the  old  paintings,  found  upon  the  person  of  each  sol- 
dier in  the  Roman  legions. 

Most  elderly  people  will  remember  the  kindling  of 
heroic  ardor  they  had  in  their  early  days,  when  they 
contemplated  Christian  in  the  few  illustrations  of  Pil- 
grim's Progress  as  he  emerged  from  the  Palace  Beau- 
tiful. He  had  been  shown  into  the  armory  at  the  be- 
ginning of  his  visit,  and  seen  all  the*  rare  weapons  of 
antiquity,  from  Shamgar's  ox-goad  to  Jael's  nail.  But 
when  he  was  to  go  on  his  journey  again,  the  three 
discreet  damsels  clad  him  with  "all  manner  of  furni- 
ture  which    their    Lord   had   provided   for    pilgrims." 


THE  CHRISTIAN  ARMOR.  6/ 

The  fight  with  Apollyon.  :  -  "All-prayer." 

Few  readers  will  ever  forget  how  different  the  brave 
man  looked  in  the  pictures  after  that.  He  had  strug- 
gled up  the  Hill  Difficulty  in  flowing  robes  which,  to 
our  critical  eyes,  seemed  effeminate.  But  now  he  ap- 
peared in  the  road  wearing  the  conspicuous  head-piece 
of  a  warrior,  almost  as  fierce  as  Greatheart  himself  in 
pursuit  of  the  giants.  Down  into  the  Valley  of  Humil- 
iation he  walked  courageously  for  his  historic  fight  with 
Apollyon. 

Concerning  this  panoply,  before  w^e  leave  John  Bun- 
yan,  perhaps  it  may  be  well  to  note  three  points  which 
this  prince  of  dreamers  has  plainly  made.  First,  he 
calls  us  to  observe  that  Christian,  in  all  his  splendid  ac- 
coutrement, had  been  provided  with  no  armor  for  his 
back,  so  that  he  felt  it  necessary,  when  the  bellowing 
fiend  drew  near,  '*to  venture  and  stand  his  ground," 
since  to  turn  would  give  him  greater  advantage  to 
pierce  with  darts. 

Then,  in  the  enumeration  of  weapons,  Bunyan  men- 
tions ^^ all-prayer''  as  one  which  possessed  great  value 
and  efficiency.  For  myself,  I  acknowledge  that  in  my 
youth  I  was  greatly  curious  to  know  what  this  part  of 
the  armor  could  be.  I  think  I  understand  more  about 
it  now,  since  I  have  been  in  the  conflict. 

And  then,  Bunyan  shows  us  that  in  all  the  panoply 
Christian  wore,  there  was  only  one  thing  for  attack  ; 
the  rest  was  for  mere  defence.  The  s7vord  proved  to 
be  the  man's  reliance  ;  for  when  Apollyon  had  him 
fairly   down,    it   was    only   with   his    great    two-edged 


68  THE   CHRISTIAN  ARMOR. 

The  sword  of  the  Spirit.  The  word  of  God . 

sword  that  he  gave  the  fiend  a  "  deadly  thrust "  which 
turned  the  battle;  ''then,  indeed,  he  did  smile  and 
look  upward  ! " 

4.  So  I  judge  we  may  profitably  devote  a  little  more 
study  to  the  description  of  this  weapon — '*  the  sword  of 
the  Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of  God." 

It  is  to  be  supposed  that  all  true  Christians  admit  the 
truth  of  that  military  maxim — the  best  defence  is  a 
swift  attack. 

When  our  Lord  was  tempted  in  the  w^ilderncss,  he 
did  nothing  more  than  just  quote  Scripture.  He 
pressed  Satan  so  vigorously  that  he  began  to  quote 
Scripture  too.  Three  texts  of  Deuteronomy — a  book 
which  skeptics  are  trying  their  best  nowadays  to  get 
rid  of — defeated  the  adversary  finally.  Jesus  might 
have  used  any  other  form  of  deliverance,  but  he  chose 
that  in  order  that  we  who  were  to  come  after  might 
know  the  devil  could  be  certainly  defeated  with  that. 
"The  word  of  God  is  quick,  and  powerful,  and  sharper 
than  any  two-edged  sw^ord,  piercing  even  to  the  divid- 
ing asunder  of  soul  and  spirit,  and  of  the  joints  and 
marrow,  and  is  a  discerner  of  the  thoughts  and  intents 
of  the  heart." 

Apollos  was  an  experienced  and  adroit  swordsman  ; 
he  was  ^'  mighty  in  the  Scriptures."  T©  have  a  weapon 
in  one's  hand  that  is  certain  to  pierce  the  scales  of 
Apollyon  every  thrust,  is  of  itself  enough  to  make 
every  one  valiant.  Most  of  us  have  been  told  the 
child's  story  about  a  mysterious  sword  which  had  in  its 


THE   CHRISTIAN  ARMOR.  69 

The  coward's  cure.  Hewitson's  defence. 

construction  a  kind  of  life  of  its  own.  It  was  put  in 
the  hand  of  a  coward  in  order  to  work  liis  cure.  When 
he  tried  to  run  away,  it  kept  him  right  up  to  the  front 
of  the  battle.  Whenever  he  attempted  to  fling  it  from 
him,  it  clung  to  his  grasp.  Whenever  he  sought  to 
slink  out  of  sight  and  hide  the  bright  blade  in  the  folds 
of  his  uniform,  of  itself  it  would  leap  from  the  scabbard, 
and  begin  smiting  the  first  foe  it  could  touch.  By  and 
by,  he  learned  to  put  confidence  in  it ;  for  he  perceived 
he  never  could  be  beaten  as  long  as  that  invincible  hilt 
was  in  his  hand. 

Such  a  weapon  is  this  "  sword  of  the  Spirit,  w^hich  is 
the  word  of  God."  It  will  of  itself  fight,  it  will  of  itself 
conquer,  and  in  the  end  it  will  defend  and  deliver  every 
brave  man  who  trusts  it.  ''I  will  fight  you,"  said  a 
hard-fisted  man  once  to  the  saintly  Hewitson.  ''Very 
well,"  replied  he  quietly,  taking  his  Testament  from  his 
pocket ;  ''just  wait  till  I  get  out  my  sword." 

It  seems  to  me  that  this  is  what  so  interests  us  in  the 
private  Bibles  of  experienced  and  old  veterans  of  the 
cross.  Marked  and  worn,  bearing  tokens  of  use,  they 
fall  into  our  hands ;  how  reverently  we  look  upon 
them  !  Anybody  would  touch  Whitefield's  Bible  gent- 
ly, and  turn  over  its  pages  with  tenderness.  ^  Then 
there  is  the  old  family  Bible,  and  our  mother' s**Bible. 
All  these  make  us  think  of  those  days  when  Scandina- 
vian heroes  hung  up  their  historic  swords  as  symbols  of 
prowess  among  the  statues  of  the  demi-gods  in  the  halls 
of  the  Walhalla. 


70  THE  CHRISTIAN  ARMOR. 

Our  comrades.  True  heroism. 

Thus  have  we  been  passing  through  this  military 
pageant  ;  we  have  heard  the  call  to  conflict ;  we  have 
recognized  the  adversary  ;  we  have  seen  the  armor  ;  we 
have  touched  the  v/eapon.  There  is  nothing  left  to  us 
now  but  the  comradeship  ;  quietly  does  the  pictured 
scene  vanish  ;  the  words  of  this  beloved  apostle,  as  he 
closes  the  stirring  passage,  are  pathetic  and  calm : 
''  Praying  always  with  all  prayer  and  supplication  in 
the  Spirit,  and  watching  thereunto  with  all  perseverance 
and  supplication  for  all  saints  :  and  for  me,  that  utter- 
ance may  be  given  unto  me,  that  I  may  open  my  mouth 
boldly,  to  make  knowm  the  mystery  of  the  gospel,  for 
which  I  am  an  ambassador  in  bonds  ;  that  therein  I  may 
speak  boldly,  as  I  ought  to  speak." 

No  Christian  fights  the  great  campaign  alone.  Around 
him  are  many  soldiers  who  lift  the  same  banner,  keep 
the  same  step  in  marching,  follow  the  same  Leader,  bear 
the  same  perils,  and  sing  the  same  song.  Paul  is  not 
too  proud  to  ask  that  he  may  be  remembered  among 
the  brethren  when  they  pray.  He  desires  to  fight  the 
good  fight,  and  keep  the  faith  unto  the  end.  He  had 
written  a  record  of  which  he  did  not  need  to  be  ashamed. 
Would  they  please  pray  for  him  now  ? 

Heroism  is  to  be  reckoned  according  to  one's  circum- 
stances of  exposure  and  need  of  endurance.  Some  of 
us  have  been  reading  a  little  story,  which  has  given  us 
a  grain  of  comfort.  It  appears  that  a  poor  but  worthy 
artisan  of  Paris  once  w^ent  to  his  bishop  wdth  his  heart 
almost  overwhelmed  with  fears.      *'  Father,"   said   he, 


THE   CHRISTIAN   ARMOR.  7 1 

The  troubled  inquirer.  The  two  castles. 

with  the  most  profound  humility,  ''  I  am  a  sinner ;  I 
admit  and  feel  I  am  a  sinner  ;  but  it  is  against  my  will. 
Every  hour  I  ask  for  light,  and  humbly  pray  for  faith  in 
my  struggle  ;  but  still  I  am  overwhelmed  with  doubt. 
Surely,  if  I  were  not  despised  of  God,  he  would  not 
leave  me  to  fight  thus  with  the  adversary  of  souls.  Does 
he  see  me  in  the  midst  of  my  grief  ?  " 

The  bishop  is  reported  to  have  consoled  his  sorrowing 
visitor  in  this  way:  "You  are  aware,"  said  he,  *' that 
the  king  of  the  realm  has  two  castles  on  which  he  much 
relies  for  the  defences  of  France.  That  at  Montlhery 
is  far  inland,  and  remains  remote  out  of  danger ;  but 
that  at  La  Rochelle  is  on  the  coast  and  is  always  a  con- 
spicuous mark  for  marauders  from  the  sea,  and  exposed 
to  sieges  ;  indeed,  it  bears  the  scars  of  balls  from  a  hun- 
dred bombardments  already.  A  commander  has  to  be 
appointed  yearly  to  each  of  these  famous  fortresses. 
Now  tell  me,  wiiich  do  you  suppose  stands  eminently 
the  highest  in  the  estimation  of  the  monarch  ? "  And 
the  man  answered  easily,  "  That  soldier  is  the  bravest 
who  holds  his  own  the  most  firmly  in  the  place  where 
there  is  greatest  danger." 

Then  the  bishop  pronounced  his  reply  well  made, 
only  adding:  ''And  our  king  puts  ever  his  most  trusty 
veterans  into  the  castle  of  La  Rochelle  ;  any  one  who 
could  just  live  there  could  grow  to  be  famous  without 
an  effort  in  the  castle  of  Montlhery  !  " 

Says  George  Eliot,  "  It  is  only  by  a  wide  compari- 
son made  amoncr  common  facts  that  even  the  wisest  full- 


72  THE   CHPaSTIAN   ARMOR. 

"  Wcll-roUedjDarrcls."  Old  soldiers  coming  home. 

grown  man  can  distinguish  well-rolled  barrels  from  more 
supernal  thunder."  Our  times  are  crowded  with  excit- 
ing disclosures.  We  are  not  certain  just  at  the  moment 
that  when  the  books  are  opened  it  will  not  be  found  that 
some  of  the  heroes  of  this  age  are  simply  those  who  have 
stood  in  high  positions  of  temptation,  and  yet  have  not 
fallen  from  integrity.  Even  much-abused  and  much- 
sinning  Robert  Burns  could  say  : 

**  What's  done  we  partly  may  compute, 
But  know  not  what's  resisted." 

How  much  old  soldiers  always  love  each  other  !  They 
are  the  gentlest  men  always  who  are  the  bravest.  Cow- 
ards only  are  coarse.  What  a  pageant  that  will  be  to 
see  when  the  gates  are  lifted  up,  and  the  King  of  Glo«y 
shall  enter  heaven,  leading  in  the  hosts  of  those  who 
have  put  on,  and  worn  in  fidelity,  *'  the  whole  armor  of 
God!" 


VII. 

THE   MIND   OF   CHRIST. 

Lkt  this  mind  be  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus. — 
Ph'd'ippians  2  :  5. 

*'  The  grand  natural  feature  of  our  northern  life,"  says 
a  popular  Swedish  writer,  *'is  a  conquered  winter." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  extreme  temperatures 
of  those  almost  arctic  regions  need  warm  hearts  and  in- 
ventive minds  to  render  them  endurable.  The  fierce 
blasts  chill  the  blood  ;  vivacity  and  good  cheer  must  be 
had  in  order  to  make  its  currents  flow  again.  And  so, 
as  the  tourists  tell  us,  you  will  find,  while  you  journey 
through  Norway  or  Sweden,  as  well  as  Northern  Den- 
mark, the  hospitable  lights  gleaming  in  low  windows 
with  a  new  friendliness  of  welcome,  the  great  fires  roar- 
ing in  the  capacious  chimneys,  and  simple-hearted  neigh- 
bors coming  every  evening  to  cluster  at  each  other's 
board.  There  are  innocent  entertainments  for  the  el- 
ders, intricate  puzzle-games  for  the  children,  and  for  the 
youths  and  maidens  (telling  the  never-old  story)  brave 
legends  and  sweet  songs. 

Thus  the  iciness  of  those  Scandinavian  climates  melts 

in  the  glow  of  charity  and  kindly  offices  of  considerate 

regard.     The  secret  of  the  genial  villagers'  success  lies 

in  the  fact  that  they  not  only  subdue  the  winter,  but  also 

4 


74  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST. 

"  A  conquered  winter."  The  new  life. 

ingeniously  reproduce  some  sort  of  organization — like 
summer — in  its  place. 

See  here  a  symbol  of  the  task  which  a  living  Christian- 
ity has  set  for  itself  to  accomplish.  It  is  no  more  nor 
less  than  a  positive  triumph  over  the  unregenerate  win- 
ter in  the  hearts  of  men  at  large.  The  gospel  proposes 
to  introduce  into  all  the  torpor  now  reigning  in  sinful 
humanity  a  vital  cheer  and  charm,  which  shall  kindle  it 
to  attractiveness,  and  bring  back  to  it  a  semblance,  at 
least,  of  the  summer  day  of  its  purity  and  peace.  We 
cannot  banish  winter,  but  we  can  conquer  it. 

Not,  however,  by  just  one  frantic  effort,  but  by  some 
constituted  plan  of  long  continuance  and  wide  reach. 
Religion  aims,  therefore,  to  check  malevolence  and  all 
vice,  harmonize  discord,  eradicate  error,  enlighten  igno- 
rance, relieve  innocent  poverty,  banish  needless  pain, 
and  hush  the  whirlwinds  of  tempestuous  strife.  But 
that  is  not  all,  by  any  means.  It  is  not  enough,  by  any 
means.  Something  positive  must  be  furnished  in  the 
place  of  that  which  it  dethrones.  The  soul  of  a  man 
cannot  live  upon  a  nothing.  If  everything  is  to  be  re- 
linquished for  piety,  then  piety  must  be  something  more 
than  a  mere  routine  of  regulations  ;  it  must  be  something 
better  than  a  mere  code  of  restraints  ;  it  must  say  *'  Thou 
mayest,"  as  well  as  "Thou  shalt  not."    ^ 

Hence  the  gospel  further  proposes  to  institute  a  new 
structure  of  human  life  altogether.  It  gathers  up  the 
reinless,  restless  faculties  of  the  soul,  and  seeks  to  com- 
bine them  as  energizing  factors  of  an  entirely  fresh  ex- 


THE   MIND   OF   CHRIST.  75 

Things  which  remain.  The  church  in  Philippi. 

istence.  So  it  makes  as  much  as  it  can  out  of  what  it 
has.  It  strengthens  *'  the  things  which  remain."  It  tries 
to  cultivate  all  the  graceful  amenities  of  a  better  social 
arrangement,  turning  men  to  help  each  other,  and  love 
each  other ;  cleansing  the  affections,  and  cementing  to- 
gether the  sympathies  of  all  those  who  own  the  common 
brotherhood  ;  and  associating  such  as  look  up  to  God 
as  the  one  good  Father  in  a  permanent  and  joyous  rela- 
tionship of  trust. 

The  epistle  to  the  Philippians  is  addressed  to  Chris- 
tians. No  one  can  read  its  affectionate  chapters  without 
becoming  impressed  with  the  thought  that  Paul  is  now 
reconstructing  a  subdued  city.  Ten  years  of  vigorous 
life  had  passed  since  this  apostle  first  preached  the  gos- 
pel in  this  Macedonian  colony,  and  brought  in  his  first 
convert  in  Europe — an  Asiatic  woman,  singularly  enough 
— whose  heart  the  Lord  opened  in  a  female  prayer-meet- 
ing. The  church  had  prospered,  was  now  large  and 
powerful.  But  the  leaders  wxre  at  variance,  and  some 
of  the  women  had  got  into  trouble. 

Kindly  as  the  apostle  writes,  it  is  evident  to  us  all  that 
he  was  vexed  and  anxious,  as  he  saw  how  foolishly  they 
were  pulling  each  other  to  pieces.  From  several  expres- 
sions, which  he  employs  in  the  closing  chapter,  we  infer 
that  the  principal  workers  were  in  a  cross,  conceited, 
and  punctilious  humor.  They  disagreed  as  to  ordinary 
methods  of  management.  They  strove  for  preeminence 
in  position.  Certain  headstrong  and  obstinate  mem- 
bers raised  a  wild  debate  in  the  church.     Two  women 


^6  THE   MIND    OF   CHRIST. 

Two  women  differ.  Divided  leadership. 

■ — Euodias,  ''well-favored,"  and  Syntyche,  ''happy-for- 
tuned," so  by  their  very  names  showing  they  might 
have  been  about  better  business — took  sides  and  went 
into  opposition. 

It  was  just  the  same  old  story,  again  and  again  re- 
peated wherever  there  are  strong  people  put  into  the 
same  field.  It  seems  inevitable  that  poor  human  na- 
tures should  differ,  provided  they  have  for  partisans 
those  who  love  solitary  opinions,  and  propose  to  force 
them  even  against  hints  of  good  fellowship. 

Unhappy  creatures  are  all  such  as  cannot  bear  to  find 
others  have  more  of  a  following  than  they  themselves 
can  present.  And  more  unhappy  still  are  the  patient 
multitudes  of  praying  people,  who  are  willing  to  follow 
anybody,  if  only  he  will  keep  the  peace  and  go  ahead, 
but  who  find  themselves  sorely  fretted  by  jealousies, 
and  embarrassed  by  cliques,  which  they  neither  appre- 
ciate nor  understand. 

In  undertaking  to  pacify  these  excited  people  in 
Philippi,  Paul  throws  himself  back  upon  those  old  his- 
tories which  had  attached  them  to  him  in  days  gone  by. 
He  is  not  ashamed  to  plead  with  them  for  the  sake  of 
the  love  they  bore  him  personally  :  "  If  there  be  there- 
fore any  consolation  in  Christ,  if  any  comfort  of  love,  if 
any  fellowship  of  the  Spirit,  if  any  bowels  and  mercies, 
fulfil  ye  my  joy,  that  ye  be  like-minded,  having  the  same 
love,  being  of  one  accord,  of  one  mind." 

The  grounds  on  which  he  bases  his  appeal  for  a  hear- 
ing arc  awfully  solemn.     He  summons  them  to  listen 


THE  MIND   OF   CHRIST.  "JJ 

Motives  of  appeal.  Be  of  one  mind. 

by  the  joys  of  spiritual  repose  in  the  Saviour ;  by  the 
tender  impressiveness  of  his  example  ;  by  the  expe- 
rience of  charity  Christians  feel  when  they  love  each 
other ;  by  the  hopeful  communion  they  cherish  in  the 
Holy  Ghost ;  and  by  the  affectionate  sensibilities  which 
they  give  to  the  lonely  and  ruined  world  around  them. 
No  one  can  fail  to  notice  the  exceedingly  lowly  and 
affectionate  manner  w^hich  this  great  and  good  man 
adopts  in  approaching  these  insurrectionary  people. 
Most  men  would  have  lost  head  under  such  reverent 
obedience  as  that  church  at  Philippi  was  accustomed  to 
give  Paul.  He  might  have  ordered  them  ;  but  he  now 
entreats.  He  had  an  undoubted  chance  to  command  ; 
but  he  only  implores. 

The  end  he  aims  at  is  perfectly  plain.  Of  one  thing, 
with  all  his  vast  experience,  he  now  must  have  grown 
perfectly  certain — no  church,  no  family,  no  organiza- 
tion for  Christian  work  and  edification,  could  prosper, 
unless  the  members  were  absolutely  united  in  spirit,  in 
temper,  and  in  plans.  These  words,  ''  that  ye  be  like- 
minded,"  may  be  rendered  literally,  ''thinking  the  self- 
same thing."  The  unity  of  purpose  he  contemplates 
must  be  unbroken,  like  the  harmony  of  instruments  in 
a  band  of  music  ;  like  the  step  of  a  trained  platoon  of 
soldiers,  rhythmic  and  regular  ;  like  the  orderly  pull 
of  singing  sailors  when  they  weigh  the  anchor  at  sea. 

Now  most  of  us  know  some  ministers  w^lio  preach, 
and  some  merchants  who  give  benefactions,  and  some 
teachers  who   instruct  classes,  and  some   book-makers 


78  THE   MIND   OF   CHRIST. 

Lowliness  of  mind.  Church  of  Scotland. 

who  write,  and  some  artists  who  sing,  and  some  flimsy 
fops  who  dress,  for  merest  display  of  talent,  figure,  cul- 
tivation, and  supposable  graces.  Against  this  the  can- 
did apostle  proceeds  directly:  ''Let  nothing  be  done 
through  strife  or  vainglory ;  but  in  lowliness  of  mind 
let  each  esteem  other  better  than  themselves."  The 
noun  here  translated  ''vainglory"  occurs  nowhere  else 
in  the  Scriptures.  It  is  devoutly  to  be  wished  that  the 
spirit  censured  in  it  had  never  been  known  outside  of 
that  little  colony  in  Macedonia  to  which  the  rebuke  was 
first  sent. 

In  165 1,  the  Assembly  of  the  Church  of  Scotland 
drew  up  an  extensive  enumeration  of  sins,  most  re- 
markable for  its  startling  annunciation  of  blame  and 
for  its  searching  detection  of  the  particulars  on  which 
it  rested.  Among  the  statements  are  found  the  crying 
wrongs,  in  that  day,  of  people  and  clergy  alike.  This, 
for  a  prominent  example:  "We  acknowledge  that,  in 
our  prayers  for  the  divine  assistance,  we  pray  more  for 
aid  to  the  messenger  than  we  do  for  aid  to  the  message 
we  bring ;  not  caring  what  becomes  eventually  of  the 
word,  if  only  we  be,  with  some  measure  of  assistance, 
carried  on  with  the  duty."  Then  this,  for  another  item 
of  ordinary  wrong :  "We  acknowledge  that  we  preach 
Christ,  not  so  much  that  the  people  may.know  him,  but 
that  they  may  think  we  know  much  of  him  ourselves." 

Now  it  cannot  be  expected  that  such  candor  as  this 
will  find  its  way  often  into  public  confession.  Pride  and 
vainglory  are  often  unconsciously  cherished.     It  is  an 


THE   MIND   OF   CHRIST.  79 

Old  apothegm.  Self-deception. 

ancient  classical  apothegm  :  *' A  serpent  is  never  seen 
at  its  full  length  until  it  is  dying."  No  one  will  ever 
know  how  obstinate  a  thing  in  the  Christian  breast  this 
proud  temper  is,  unless  with  courageous  purpose  he  at- 
tacks it,  with  full  intention  to  kill. 

The  commonplaces  of  duty,  the  simplicities  of  doc- 
trine, the  first  beginnings  of  experience — these  are  what 
are  hardest  to  instill  into  the  minds  of  most  self-seeking 
believers.  There  are  some  in  this  world  so  thoroughly 
mistaken  in  their  estimate  of  themselves  that  they  can- 
not see  the  scales  by  which  their  eyes  are  blinded.  They 
display  their  enormous  conceit  in  no  other  way  so  plain- 
ly as  by  asserting  they  are  absolutely  destitute  of  the 
vice  of  vanity.  They  flatter  themselves  by  saying  they 
have  so  much  dignity  that  they  cannot  be  flattered. 
They  assert  they  have  no  bad  temper ;  and  then  flash 
into  perilous  wrath  at  the  amazing  impudence  of  the 
man  who  doubted  it.  They  will  for  years  watch  sullenly 
to  take  vengeance  upon  the  unwary  friend  who  tendered 
an  unwelcome  admonition  against  their  being  revenge- 
ful— a  disposition  they  always  denied.  There  are  some 
persons  whose  very  eyes  shine  with  pride  just  because 
they  have  settled  that  now  they  have  reached  the  ex- 
treme virtue  of  humility.  Hence  wisely  said  the  old 
philosopher  Seneca  :  ''  Flatteries,  even  w^hen  they  have 
been  most  deprecated,  please." 

The  remedy,  which  the  apostle  here  recommends,  is 
direct :  ''  Look  not  every  man  on  his  own  things,  but 
every  man  also  on  the  things  of  others."     This  is  what 


80  THE   MIND    OF   CHRIST. 

Heroic  treatment.  The  note  book. 

physicians  call  '^  heroic  treatment."  Paul  says  each  man 
is  to  consider  others  not  only  equal  to  himself,  but  bet- 
ter. The  cure  of  conceit,  therefore,  would  be  found 
in  just  putting  our  neighbor  forward  in  the  exact  place 
we  ourselves  covet.  ''  All  great  things  are  simple  :  "  so 
once  said  a  great  statesman,  himself  as  simple  as  he  was 
great.  This  bold  apostle  deliberately  proposes  that  those 
quarrelsome  and  ambitious  people  in  Philippi  settle  their 
discords  by  giving  up  quietly  to  each  other  ! 

In  the  Westminster  Assembly,  it  is  said  the  members 
kept  little  books,  vv^ierein  they  noted  arguments  to  be 
answered,  or  heads  of  speeches  to  be  made.  In  that  re- 
nowned body  there  was  one  man  of  whom  heretofore  the 
literary  and  theologic  world  had  heard  little.  So  mod- 
est and  retiring  w^as  he  that  almost  nothing  was  expected 
of  him.  Yet  now  and  then  he  startled  those  erudite 
sages  and  eloquent  doctors  v/ith  an  address  so  marvelous 
in  power  and  adroit  in  ingenuity,  as  well  as  convincing 
in  logic,  that  contemporaneous  history  rang  with  his 
praise.  Some  grew  jealous,  and  small  spite  began  to 
throw  detractions.  They  said  he  had  gathered  his  helps 
from  outside  sources,  and  filled  his  memorandum  with 
thoughts  from  other  brains  ;  in  that  must  be  the  secret 
of  his  matchless  success.  By  and  by  the  long  sessions 
broke  up,  and  he  was  asked  for  a  sight  of  the  note-books 
he  had  carried.  They  opened  every  well-worn  volume. 
Instead  of  arguments  and  reasons  and  illustrations,  they 
found  only  such  expressions  as  these  :  '*  O  Lord,  vouch- 
safe us  light  this  day!"     ''O  divine  Master,  give   us 


THE   MIND   OF   CHRIST.  8 1 

Gillespie's  prayers.  '  Our  blessed  Master. 

thine  assistance  !  "  *'  O  Lord,  glorify  thyself  through 
us  thy  servants  !  "  ^'  Christ,  defend  against  all  enemies 
thine  own  cause  !  " 

And  that  was  all.  His  power  lay  not  in  his  intellect, 
but  in  his  prayers.  His  Vv^ish  was  like  that  of  the  sainted 
Brainerd  :  "  Oh,  let  me  and  mine  be  nothing,  only  that 
thine  own  kingdom  may  come  !  " 

Higher  than  this  it  does  not  seem  possible  for  even 
an  inspired  preacher  to  go.  But  Paul  does  go  one  step 
higher.  He  grows  more  and  more  earnest  as  he  con- 
tinues to  exhort  his  dear  friends  in  Philippi,  more  and 
more  fervid  with  each  reiteration  of  his  words  of  counsel. 
And  now  at  last,  as  if  he  w^ell  understood  the  inveteracy 
of  their  besetting  sin,  he  suddenly  makes  a  new  appeal 
of  tremendous  power,  grounding  the  stress  of  it  upon 
the  very  essence  of  their  piety,  springing  out  before  them 
the  example  of  their  Master  himself,  and  challenging 
their  instant  admiration  and  imitation  :  "  Let  this  mind 
be  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ  Jesus  :  who,  being 
in  the  form  of  God,  thought  it  not  robbery  to  be  equal 
with  God  ;  but  made  himself  of  no  reputation,  and  took 
upon  him  the  form  of  a  servant,  and  was  made  in  the 
likeness  of  men  :  and  being  found  in  fashion  as  a  man, 
he  humbled  himself,  and  became  obedient  unto  death, 
even  the  death  of  the  cross.  Wherefore  God  also  hath 
highly  exalted  him,  and  given  him  a  name  which  is 
above  every  name  :  that  at  the  name  of  Jesus,  every  knee 
should  bow,  of  things  in  heaven,  and  things  in  earth, 
and  things  under  the  earth  ;  and  that  every  tongue 
4* 


82  THE  MIND   OF  CHRIST. 

Christ's  exaltation.  An  orator's  expedient. 

should  confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is  Lord,  to  the  glory 
of  God  the  Father." 

The  reach  of  this  exhortation  transcends  all  analysis. 
We  should  lose  the  vast  force  of  it  by  picking  it  to 
pieces  for  details  of  doctrine.  Be  like  Christ :  he  was 
God  ;  he  became  man  ;  could  any  one  ever  have  been 
more  worthily  exalted  ?  could  any  one  ever  have  been 
more  deeply  humiliated  ?  so  he  received  his  recompense 
of  reward. 

Just  as  some  orator,  skilfully  addressing  a  company 
of  soldiers  on  the  eve  of  battle,  begins  with  an  admoni- 
tion and  ends  with  a  picture  ;  just  as  he  w^ould  appeal 
to  their  manhood,  their  consistency,  their  honor,  and 
their  courage,  as  he  would  play  upon  their  fear  of  dis- 
grace and  their  contempt  of  poltroonry ;  just  as  he 
would  follow  up  each  motive  with  another  and  a  more 
elevated  one,  until,  at  the  last,  he  would  invoke  their 
patriotism  and  their  love  for  their  leader,  alike  and  to- 
gether, by  unfurling  the  national  ensign  and  showing 
them  how  he  had  caused  to  be  painted  across  the  folds 
the  likeness  of  the  face  they  knew ;  so  here  the  apostle 
seeks  to  arouse  Christian  enthusiasm  by  quickly  exhi- 
biting the  very  image  of  the  Captain  of  our  salvation, 
and  bidding  us  follow  him  alone. 

Not  without  a  word  of  comforting  ehcouragement, 
however.  Can  any  one  be  like  Christ  ?  Can  every  one 
be  like  Christ  ?  Paul  says  it  will  be  harder  for  some  of 
us  than  for  others.  Some  will  fear,  and  some  will  trem- 
ble ;  but  all  can  work,  and  God  is  overhead  :  **  Where- 


THE   MIND    OF   CHRIST.  S^ 

Can  all  be  like  Christ?  God  gives  help. 

fore,  my  beloved,  ?.s  ye  have  always  obeyed,  not  as  in 
my  presence  only,  but  now  much  more  in  my  absence, 
work  out  your  own  salvation  Vv^itli  fear  and  trembling  ; 
for  it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to 
do  of  his  good  pleasure." 

Surely,  if  one  desires  the  ''mind  of  Christ,"  he  must 
see  that  he  will  be  very  far  from  securing  it,  if  he  exer- 
cises his  own  mind  in  showing  how  unlike  him  other 
people  are.  **  Boasting  is  excluded."  I  do  not  know  a 
more  pathetic  spectacle  in  the  New  Testament  than  that 
of  the  two  blind  men  at  the  gate  of  Jericho — rivals  in 
business,  recollect — making  (as  it  were)  common  cause 
against  the  uncharitable  multitude,  and  in  the  same  sen- 
tence of  speech  crying  for  mercy  from  the  Son  of 
David.  Matthew  Henry's  comment  on  the  passage  is 
very  bright.  ''These  joint  sufferers,"  says  he,  "were 
joint  suitors.  Being  companions  in  the  same  tribula- 
tion, they  were  partners  in  the  same  supplication." 

In  every  honest  effort,  God  gives  mysterious  help. 
What  is  wanted  on  our  part  is  decision  winged  with  de- 
votion. Our  wills  surrender  ;  just  there,  God  wills  for 
us. 

*«  He  who  hath  felt  the  Spirit  of  the  Highest, 
Cannot  confound,  or  doubt  him,  or  defy  ; 
Yea,  with  one  voice,  O  world,  though  thou  deniest, 
Stand  thou  on  that  side — for  on  this  am  I  !'* 


VIII. 

PIETY   TESTED   AT   HOME. 
And  whatsoever  ye  do,  do  it  heartily,  as  to  the  Lord,  and 

NOT  UNTO  MEN.  —  Colossians  2\  2^. 

Just  now  my  eye  caught  glimpse  of  a  bit  of  pleasant- 
ry in  a  daily  newspaper,  which,  after  all,  had  a  meaning 
in  it.  It  seems  that  a  stranger  was  invited  to  preach 
for  what  we  call  **a  colored  church."  He  inquired 
what  subject  he  should  choose  for  a  sermon.  One  of 
the  dusky  deacons  replied,  **Oh  !  whatever  you  will,  of 
course  ;  but  I  think  you  would  do  better  not  to  try  the 
Ten  Commandments  ;  for  I  always  notice  that  when 
anybody  takes  his  text  there,  it  has  a  dampening  influ- 
ence upon  the  congregation." 

But  in  the  same  journal,  not  a  dozen  columns  away 
from  this,  I  noticed  again  that  one  of  the  *' colored" 
pastors  in  New  York,  while  commenting  upon  the 
crime  and  conviction  of  a  murderer,  who  was  a  member 
of  the  cliurch,  and  measurably  forward  in  revivals,  gave 
this  surprising  inconsistency  as  an  illustration  of  the 
disaster  resulting  from  the  divorce  of  morality  and  reli- 
gion. This  was  in  dead  earnest.  It  recalled  to  me  the 
times  before  the  war,  when  some  seemed  to  accept  a 
sort  of  unctuousncss  and  emotionalism  in  the  African 
race  for  devout  piety,  and  consider  that  a  slave  could  be 


PIETY  TESTED   AT  HOME.  85 

Religion  up  in  the  air.  Rules  too  rigid. 

a  Christian,  while  yet  his  life  was  vicious  with  pilfering 
and  lies. 

Evidently  color  and  race  have  nothing  to  do  with 
such  a  discussion.  The  religion  which  is  not  moral  has 
no  pattern  for  it  in  the  New  Testament  for  anybody. 
It  is  most  significant  to  notice  that  the  third  chapter  of 
Colossians,  which  opens  w4th  one  of  the  most  glowing 
of  all  Paul's  spiritual  appeals,  runs  at  the  end  into  one 
of  the  most  commonplace  of  his  direct  counsels.  It  be- 
gins with  saints  in  heaven,  and  finishes  with  servants  at 
home. 

That  is  to  say,  the  apostle,  seeking  to  impress  upon 
the  minds  of  those  to  whom  he  is  v/riting  the  reality  of 
vital  godliness,  gives  them  to  understand  that  it  is  no 
mere  mystical  experience  kept  up  in  the  serene  air  of 
resurrection  heights,  but  a  true  life  here  below,  cover- 
ing earthly  relationships  and  prosaic  duties. 

No  one  can  fail  to  be  struck  with  the  sprightly  cheer- 
fulness with  which  this  familiar  paragraph  opens.  Paul 
would  have  us  know  that  religion  beautifies  everything 
it  touches.  Moralities  give  a  certain  sort  of  additional 
adornment  to  the  celestial  life  in  the  soul,  just  as  the 
honest  strength  of  moss-covered  rocks  gives  a  finer  set- 
ting to  the  foam  of  a  waterfall,  as  it  flashes  white  in  the 
sunshine. 

The  reproach  which  a  ribald  world  keeps  leveling  at 
the  church  is  that  all  human  hope  and  joy,  all  exuber- 
ance of  a  contented  and  happy  heart,  are  heavily  re- 
pressed by  rigid  rules  of  behavior ;  men  are  tluuidcred 


S6  PIETY  TESTED   AT   HOME. 

Swiss  clocks.  Work  does  the  singing. 

at  by  the  **  thou  shalt  nots  "  of  the  Decalogue.,  and  (all 
fun  one  side)  it  does  have  a  ''dampening  effect"  upon 
everybody  to  walk  along  on  the  verge  of  the  tomb 
moaning  over  melancholy  prayers. 

The  picture  here  offered  furnishes  an  exquisite  reply 
to  sneers  like  this.  We  have  all  seen  those  cunning 
clocks  from  Switzerland,  hung  on  w^ork-room  w^alls,  so 
contrived  that,  as  they  tell  the  hours  patiently  off  with 
hands  accurately  running  across  the  dial,  they  shall  also 
with  each  regular  stroke  of  the  bell  instantly  burst  into 
some  lively  little  tune,  and  play  through  the  succeeding 
minutes  until  sober  ticking  of  real  work  should  be  needed 
again.  And  then  it  would  be  found  that  no  valuable 
force  had  been  wasted.  Not  a  second  had  been  lost,  in 
the  time  of  the  day,  for  all  the  sweet  recreation  of  the 
music.  The  whole  room  seemed  brighter  and  happier 
for  the  sudden  strain  which  came  forth  from  the  mech- 
anism. Yet  it  was  the  same  weights  that  moved  the 
pendulum  v/liich  also  swept  the  unseen  fingers  over  the 
hidden  v/ires  ;  it  was  just  work,  w^ith  its  solemn  purpose 
unchanged,  which  did  the  singing. 

Some  Christians  can  keep  this  up  exactly  for  a  long 
lifetime  of  love  and  labor.  These  will  understand  pre- 
cisely what  Paul  means  here  :  "  Let  the  word  of  Christ 
dwell  in  you  richly  in  all  wisdom  ;  teaching  and  admon- 
ishing one  another  in  psalms  and  hymns  and  spiritual 
songs,  singing  with  grace  in  your  hearts  to  the  Lord." 
"The  devil,"  said  Martin  Luther  once,  ''is  afraid  of 
good  singing  !  " 


PIETY  TESTED   AT   HOME.  8/ 

The  family  organization.  Jewish  legend. 

1.  Perhaps  it  is  well  to  notice  here,  as  the  first  sugges- 
tion of  all,  how  prominently  the  apostle  brings  the  family- 
organization  into  observation.  This  whole  passage  might 
be  introduced  as  a  comment  upon  the  expression  he  so 
often  employs  in  his  epistles,  when  he  sends  greetings  to 
his  familiar  friends,  and  mentions  explicitly  ''the  church 
that  is  in  thy  house." 

The  family,  as  a  divine  institution,  is  designed  to  play 
organically  into  the  church.  It  is  the  primary  church, 
the  nursery  of  the  gospel.  And  this  is  what  gives  to  it 
its  supreme  beauty  and  strength.  If  heaven  is  anywhere, 
as  we  sometimes  sing,  ''begun  below,"  it  is  under  the 
household  roof.  There  are  three  words  found  in  the 
English  language,  found  in  no  other  now  spoken  among 
men — wife^  comfort^  and  home. 

The  Jews  have  an  old  legend  that  when  Adam  and 
his  bride  were  driven  out  of  Paradise,  Eve  put  forth  her 
hand,  and,  unseen,  plucked  a  single  flower,  which  she 
hid  in  the  folds  of  her  leaf-garment.  What  the  flower 
was,  no  one  has  ever  pretended  to  say.  If  it  were  the 
notion  of  the  family  organization,  then  surely  this  was  a 
celestial  plant  well  saved  for  an  earthly  soil. 

2.  Now,  next  to  this,  we  may  note  that  the  apostle 
gives  full  authorization  to  government  as  a  bond  of 
control  and  dependence  in  the  family.  For  he  proceeds 
directly  to  recognize  husbands  and  wives,  parents  and 
children,  masters  and  servants,  as  members  of  each 
well-constituted  household.  Duties  are  announced  as 
belonging  to  each  of  these  relations. 


88  PIETY   TESTED   AT   HOME. 

Was  Paul  married  ?  Christian  homes. 

One  of  the  incidental  proofs  of  the  inspiration  we  are 
accustomed  to  credit  to  this  remarlvable  man,  is  found 
in  the  consummate  tact  and  delicacy  which  in  every  in- 
stance characterize  his  words  when  he  speaks  of  the 
home  relation.  It  is  yet  a  mooted  question  whether 
Paul  was  a  married  man,  or  ever  had  a  family  of  his 
own.  But  he  certainly  knev/  a  language  v/hich  most  of 
us  can  understand  ;  a  great  human  common  sense  makes 
his  words  Vv^ise  and  profitable.  Of  John  Milton  the  great 
Dr.  Johnson  once  said,  *'  He  was  a  genius  that  could  cut 
a  Colossus  from  a  rock,  but  he  could  not  carve  heads 
upon  cherry-stones."  This  chapter  gives  us  evidence 
that  Paul  was  quite  equal  to  the  themes  with  which  he 
was  divinely  entrusted,  both  the  little  and  the  large. 
One  rule  he  gave  in  the  outset,  covering  every  conceiv- 
able exigency  :  ''  And  whatsoever  ye  do  in  word  or  deed, 
do  all  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  giving  thanks  to 
God  and  the  Father  by  him." 

The  application  of  such  a  rule  as  that  to  all  the  author- 
ities and  subordinations  of  a  Christian  family,  would  re- 
move from  them  their  violence  and  their  peril  in  every 
particular.  There  would  be  consideration  for  the  young 
and  reverence  for  the  old.  There  would  be  obedience 
and  fidelity,  confidence  and  recollection  of  need. 

Think  of  a  room — what  we  used  to  call  the  ''living- 
room  "  when  we  were  young.  Stand  (in  imagination)  at 
the  door  of  it  now.  See  what  the  artists  denominate  an 
''interior."  Nobody  is  within  at  the  m.oment ;  we  arc 
alone,  pausing  on  the  quiet  threshold.     Not  a  sign  of 


PIETY  TESTED   AT   HOME.  89 

The  "living-room."  Eli's  curse. 

life  is  there  save  the  mere  bird  that  lit  from  the  lilac  on 
the  window-sill  an  instant  ago.  Yet  how  full  of  real 
beautiful  life  the  room  is  !  Everything  we  love  and  look 
for  is  right  before  us. 

Otherwise  it  would  not  be  a  living  room.  There  in 
one  corner  stands  grandfather's  table  with  the  Bible 
and  his  spectacles  upon  it.  In  the  other  corner  stands 
a  rocking-horse,  and  down  beside  it  lies  a  tin  rattle  on 
the  floor.  Mother's  basket — see  the  emery-balls  like 
big  strawberries !  Father's  writing-desk  against  the 
wall — see  the  sealing-w^ax  he  sometimes  lends  us  to 
head  pins  with  ! 

One  of  the  particulars  of  Eli's  curse  was  that  there 
should  be  no  old  man  in  his  house.  And  the  reason 
given  for  this  w^as  that  he  had  not  earlier  governed  his 
children.  How  could  any  fitly-organized  family  get 
along  without  us  all  together — old  and  young — sister 
and  brother — the  baby,  and  (you  could  tell  me  her 
name  if  I  asked  you)  dear  old  faithful  nurse — all  be- 
longing there,  and  welcom.e  forever  !  And  now  let  that 
home  be  Christian,  and  on  this  earth  there  is  nothing 
better  to  see. 

Travelers  approach  Venice  often  in  the  evening ; 
and,  just  as  they  enter,  there  quite  possibly  floats  out- 
side the  barriers  a  tranquil  gondola  laden  with  dear 
companions,  who  sing  as  they  drift  in  the  moonliglit. 
The  bright  garments  are  yellow  with  the  fruits  that  lie 
in  their  laps,  and  the  flowers  droop  from  the  children's 
hair.     And  with  the  sweet  faces,  the  gay  sally,  and  the 


90  PIETY  TESTED   AT  HOME. 

Gondolas  in  Venice.  Subordinations. 


gentle  song — oh,  it  does  seem  to  the  fatigued  tourist, 
speeding  on  in  the  cars,  as  if  an  actual  portion  of  itself 
had  escaped  from  the  beautiful  City  of  the  Sea,  and 
had  unconsciously  glided  forth  beyond  the  walls  that  it 
might  gladden  the  shadows  of  the  solemn  lagoon  with 
its  joy ! 

Fit  symbol  is  this,  to  say  the  least,  by  which  to  speak 
of  a  household  ruled  by  Christ,  and  loving  him  as  Lord 
over  all.  It  seems  so  like  heaven,  in  spirit  of  joy  and 
love,  that  one  might  be  pardoned  for  imagining  it  must 
be  a  part  of  it. 

3.  Add  now  to  this  a  third  thought,  which  the  apostle 
is  very  careful  to  put  in,  for  he  knows  it  is  needed  just 
here.  A  distinct  limit  has  been  fixed  in  the  family  or- 
ganization for  the  indulgence  and  exercise  of  authority. 
It  is  curious  to  observe  how  exactly  each  relationship  in 
the  household  is  brought  up  against  that  which  is  its 
legitimate  offset,  so  that  there  should  be  no  injustice 
wrought.  Thus  he  runs  through  all  the  subordina- 
tions;  "beginning,"  as  said  old  Dr.  Wisner,  ''with  the 
tcnderest,  and  ending  with  the  toughest." 

The  husband  is  the  head  of  the  family,  and  must 
be  the  final  governor  of  its  realm.  Hence  says  Paul : 
''Wives,  submit  yourselves  unto  your  own  husbands,  as 
it  is  fit  in  the  Lord."  But  now  there  ia  danger.  Irre- 
sponsible authority  is  exceedingly  perilous  to  the  pos- 
sessor. Hence  continues  Paul:  "Husbands,  love  your 
wives,  and  be  not  bitter  against  them."  The  rule  to  be 
maintained  must  be  tempered  with  affection.     Out  of 


PIETY  TESTED   AT   HOME.  gi 

"  Children,  obey."  "  Fathers,  provoke  not." 

that,  consideration  will  come.  Something  is  said  some- 
where about  the  wife  being  the  '' weaker  vessel."  If 
so,  more  care  and  delicacy  will  be  needed  in  the  man- 
agement to  keep  the  ''bitter"  out. 

Then  comes  another  relationship,  taken  up  with  its 
balance  also  :  ''Children,  obey  your  parents  in  all  things  : 
for  this  is  well  pleasing  unto  the  Lord."  Most  of  us 
know  what  that  means,  and  first  and  last  have  had  it  ex- 
plained to  us.  But  do  we  dwell  as  much  on  this : 
*'  Fathers,  provoke  not  your  children  to  anger,  lest  they 
be  discouraged."  I  distinctly  remember  that,  as  a 
child,  I  thought  tliis  one  of  the  wisest  texts  in  the  Bible, 
and  used  to  get  a  good  deal  of  comfort  out  of  it  in  sea- 
sons of  home  depression. 

A  child  has  the  keenest  sort  of  sense  of  injustice. 
Generally  a  decent  boy  means  well,  if  we  can  only  get 
at  what  he  means.  He  wants  a  chance  to  explain. 
More  real  wrong  has  been  done  to  after  life  than  in  any 
other  way,  by  hasty  and  impetuous  demands  for  un- 
questioning silence,  when  a  child  has  only  been  trying 
to  make  his  righteousness  appear.  The  saddest  of  all 
my  human  experiences,  I  do  here  soberly  assert,  have 
been  when  I  was  unable  to  secure  a  fair  showing,  and 
got  "discouraged." 

There  is  something  positively  beautiful  in  the  inge- 
nuity with  which  the  apostle  leads  up  the  self-respect  of 
sen^ants  in  a  Christian  household  with  the  thought  that 
God  knov/s,  recognizes,  and  will  reward,  fidelity  to  their 
earthly  masters,  even  in  the  extreme  of  obedience  :  "  Ser 


92 

PIETY   TESTED   AT   HOME. 

Self-respect  kept  up. 

We  serve  Christ. 

vants,  obey  in  all  things  your  masters,  according  to  the 
flesh  ;  not  with  eye-service,  as  men-pleasers  ;  but  in  sin- 
gleness of  heart,  fearing  God  :  and  whatsoever  ye  do, 
do  it  heartily,  as  to  the  Lord,  and  not  unto  men."  This 
counsel,  as  before,  Paul  offsets  with  a  warning ;  but  he 
intimates  it,  in  this  instance,  with  great  courtesy,  rather 
than  states  it  outright.  He  tells  the  servants  that  there 
is  a  life  beyond  this,  and  a  Master  overhead  by  whom 
all  people  are  one  time  to  be  fairly  judged  :  "Knowing 
that  of  the  Lord  ye  shall  receive  the  reward  of  the  in- 
heritance ;  for  yc  serve  the  Lord  Christ.  But  he  that 
doeth  wrong  shall  receive  for  the  wrong  v/hich  he  hath 
done  :  and  there  is  no  respect  of  persons." 

The  social  and  domestic  station  of  a  servant,  here  in 
our  republican  land,  is  not  so  firmly  fixed  or  clearly  out- 
lined as  it  is  in  the  more  aristocratic  countries  of  the  Old 
World.  But  there  is  enough  in  it  even  with  us  to  try 
character  seriously,  and  give  chance  for  the  exhibition 
of  true  Christian  grace.  The  apostle,  in  the  passage 
we  are  studying,  does  not  go  sufficiently  into  details  to 
cross  the  minor  relationships,  or  attempt  to  outline  the 
duties  they  owe  to  each  other.  For  example,  how  ought 
servants  to  behave  toward  children,  and  what  consid- 
eration do  children  owe  to  those  who  Avait  on  them  ? 

Does  not  the  observation  of  most  mpn  and  women 
bear  me  out  in  remarking  here  that  the  worst  afflictions 
honest  and  painstaking  dependents — nurses  and  govern- 
esses and  waiters,  and  all  that — have  to  endure,  come 
from  children  ?    The  sights  in  the  parks  on  Saturday  af- 


PIETY   TESTED   AT   HOME.  93 

Little  King  Pepins.  Garments  in  sunshine. 

ternoons  are  simply  exasperating.  The  tyranny  of  boys 
over  the  servants  sent  to  watch  them  is  awful.  They  are 
nothing  more  than  pigmy  despots — little  violent  King 
Pepins — with  a  sceptre  like  a  steel  whip.  I  have  seen 
girls  dressed  in  highest  gentility  of  garments,  whose  lan- 
guage and  demeanor  would  have  been  a  shame  to  a  fish- 
market,  as  they  disputed  with  a  small  maid,  who  was 
trying  to  do  her  best  as  she  had  been  told,  and  threat- 
ened her  with  lying  reports  they  would  take  home,  un- 
less she  yielded  to  some  bold  demand. 

The  one  thought  which  lies  upon  my  mind  now,  after 
studying  all  these  verses  so  patiently,  is  this  :  How  much 
of  reality  there  is  in  the  Bible,  how  much  of  deplorable 
sham  there  is  outside  of  it ! 

What  sort  of  religion  is  it  that  genuine  men  and  women 
need  ?  Let  them  choose  it  as  they  do  their  clothes.  It 
is  a  shopkeeper's  trick  to  exhibit  fabrics  for  garments  in 
an  unnatural  glare  or  a  fictitious  gloom.  Better  to  look 
on  them  in  the  honest,  temperate  sunshine  of  every-day 
experience,  where  they  are  to  be  worn.  And  so  of  our 
piety.  How  wholesome  it  is  to  let  an  apostle  lead  us 
into  the  bosom  of  our  families  for  test ! 

Fidelity  in  small  things — in  ordinary  relationships — 
this  is  what  meets  God's  approval,  and  will  receive  di- 
vine reward.  At  the  last — at  the  last — it  will  be  seen 
that  not  the  vast  things  always,  but  the  patient  and  the 
true,  have  been  the  greatest.  *'  He  that  is  faithful  in 
that  which  is  least,  is  faithful  also  in  much  ;  and  he  that 
is  unjust  in  the  least,  is  unjust  also  in  much." 


94  PIETY   TESTED   AT   HOME. 

Samson's  last  feat.  Gentle  manliness. 

*'  Manoah's  son,  in  his  blind  rage  malign, 

Tumbling  the  temple  down  upon  his  foes, 
Did  no  such  feat  as  yonder  delicate  vine 
That  day  by  day  untired  holds  up  a  rose." 

Even  out-of-door  business  is  not  so  effectual  in  its  ex- 
hibition of  real  religious  character  as  this  quiet  life  in  the 
home  circle.  Many  a  man  is  noted  among  his  compan- 
ions on  the  street  as  an  amiable  and  gentle-hearted  com- 
rade, who  is  excessively  cross  and  overbearing  under  the 
cover  of  his  own  roof.  He  passes  for  a  generous  fellow 
full  of  courtesy,  while  his  wife  mourns  because  of  his 
chillness,  and  his  children  grow  tremulous  when  his  step 
is  heard  in  the  hall.  Small  tyrannies  and  selfish  neg- 
lects, petty  indulgence  of  fretted  passion,  and  sullen 
bursts  of  temper,  cannot  be  atoned  for  by  talks  in  the 
public  conference  or  gifts  on  the  plate. 


IX. 

THE   COMING  OF  THE   LORD. 

For  this  we  say  unto  you  by  the  word  of  the  Lord,  that 
we  which  akk  alive  and  remain  unto  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  shall  not  prevent  them  which  are  asleep.— i  Thessa- 
lonians  4  :  15. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  everybody  should  be  alarmed, 
the  moment  one  mentions  the  matter  of  our  Lord's  sec- 
ond coming  on  the  earth.  A  very  absurd  sensitivity  is 
manifested,  lest  what  are  called  '*pre-millennial  views" 
should  find  welcome  in  the  churches.  Surely,  quiet  ex- 
position of  Scripture  ought  always  to  be  in  order.  Only 
lately  has  over-violent  suspicion  been  started.  Certain 
aspects  of  New  Testament  truth  have  hitherto  found 
favor  among  the  most  considerate  of  people. 

I.  For  example,  we  are  all  agreed  that  Jesus  Christ  is 
coming  again  some  time.  Only  some  say  that  he  will 
come  at  the  general  judgment,  and  others  say  he  is  com- 
ing before. 

Years  on  years  we  have  been  singing  harmlessly  to 
old  **  Duke  Street  "  the  verse  : 

*'  Religion  bears  our  spirits  up, 

While  we  expect  that  blessed  hope — 
The  bright  appearance  of  the  Lord: 
And  faith  stands  leaning  on  his  word." 


g6  THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

Watts'  version.  The  oldest  epistle. 

Now,  this  is  nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  metrical 
rendering  which  Isaac  Watts  lias  given  us  of  the  passage 
in  Titus :  *'  For  the  grace  of  God  that  bringeth  salvation 
hath  appeared  to  all  men,  teaching  us  that,  denying 
ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we  should  live  soberly, 
righteously,  and  godly,  in  this  present  world  ;  looking 
for  that  blessed  hope,  and  the  glorious  appearing  of  the 
great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  And  when 
strife  runs  so  high  in  discussion,  it  seems  exceedingly 
apt  to  quote  the  counsel:  ''Let  your  moderation  be 
known  to  all  men  :  the  Lord  is  at  hand." 

2.  Then,  again,  we  are  all  agreed  that  the  dead  will 
be  raised  to  life  when  the  Lord  Jesus  comes.  In  a  nota- 
ble series  of  verses,  addressed  to  the  church  in  Thessa- 
lonica,  the  apostle  Paul  takes  pains  to  meet  a  manifest 
anxiety  on  this  head.  "  But  I  Avould  not  have  you  to  be 
ignorant,  brethren,  concerning  them  which  are  asleep, 
that  ye  sorrow  not,  even  as  others  which  liave  no  hope. 
For  if  we  believe  that  Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even 
so  them  also  which  sleep  in  Jesus  will  God  bring  with 
him." 

There  is  great  significance  in  this  ;  for  we  must  re- 
member that  the  first  epistle  to  the  Thessalonians  is  the 
oldest  thing  in  the  New  Testament.  Evidently,  the 
earliest  matter  of  discussion  among  tha  immediate  fol- 
lowers of  the  risen  Redeemer  w^as  concerning  the  state 
and  future  faring  of  the  pious  dead.  Why  not  study  up 
all  we  can  know  upon  this  subject  ?  Paul  says  he  would 
not  have  those  people  ignorant. 


THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD.  97 

Who  was  "  666  ?  "  The  ancient  dead. 

It  is  folly  und  wilfulness  to  insist  that  all  disquisitions 
in  this  direction  end  in  extravagance.  When  one  is 
simply  invited  to  notice  that  all  the  Scripture  writers 
appear  to  look  upon  the  Saviour's  advent  as  very  near, 
even  in  their  time,  it  does  not  seem  either  fair  or  relc- 
VTint  to  begin  laughing  at  those  who  have  spent  their 
time  trying  to  find  out  what  *'  man  "  six  hundred  and 
sixty-six  was  the  *'  number"  of.  Prophecy  is  a  difTerent 
thing  from  eschatology. 

3.  In  the  third  place,  we  are  all  alike  interested  in  the 
inquiry  whether  those  believers  v/ho  are  still  living,  at 
the  m.oment  when  Jesus  Christ  appears,  v/ill  have  any 
advantage  over  such  as  shall  have  died  previous  to  that 
moment  ;  and  these  verses  make  it  all  clear. 
'■  There  had  been  certain  announcements  made  concern- 
ing the  advent,  which  filled  the  minds  of  the  early  Chris- 
tians and  arrested  their  imaginations.  They  grew  en- 
thusiastic as  they  reproduced  the  pictures  of  glorious 
prediction,  v/hen  the  King  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
should  descend  and  claim  his  ow"n.  Those  who  had  been 
laid  avs^ay  in  the  tomb  might  almost  be  pitied,  for  they 
were  in  danger  of  being  deprived  of  the  privilege  of 
hurrying  to  the  Monarch's  triumphal  advance.  Poor 
human  weakness  could  not  understand  how  the  scat- 
tered dust  could  be  collected  rapidly  enough,  and  how 
the  hurry  of  events  could  escape  falling  into  confusion 
for  the  ancient  saints.  It  did  seem  to  some  affectionate 
hearts  that  there  was  peril  for  those  who  had  died  v/ith- 
out  the  siffht  lone:  ajro.     *' These  all -died  in  faith,  not 


98         THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

Death  a  sleep.  i  All  alive  together. 

having  received  the  promises,  but  having  seen  them  afar 
off,  and  were  persuaded  of  them,  and  embraced  them, 
and  confessed  that  they  were  strangers  and  pilgrims  on 
the  earth."  Such  might  even  be  overlooked,  perhaps 
they  were  already  forgotten  in  their  silence,  possibly 
they  would  be  belated  in  the  sublime  confusions  of  that 
day  of  the  Lord.     Now  was  this  just  fair  ? 

The  apostle,  having  first  asserted  in  their  hearing  that 
to  be  dead  only  meant  to  be  asleep  in  Jesus — nobody  was 
lost,  nobody  had  slipped  out  of  sight  or  remembrance, 
but  every  one  was  coming  when  Jesus  himself  should 
come — now  answers  the  eager  question  about  the  multi- 
tudes of  such  as  would  not  have  died.  It  is  worth  no- 
ticing how  solemnly  and  authoritatively  he  introduces 
his  asseveration  ;  he  pledges  the  entire  weight  of  his  in- 
spiration in  it :  **  For  this  we  say  unto  you  by  the  word 
of  the  Lord,  that  we  which  are  alive  and  remain  unto 
the  coming  of  the  Lord  shall  not  prevent  them  which 
are  asleep.  For  the  Lord  himself  shall  descend  from 
heaven  v/ith  a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel, 
and  with  the  trump  of  God  :  and  the  dead  in  Christ 
shall  rise  first." 

We  all  understand  that  the  old  English  word  prevent 
means  eome  before^  or  anticipate.  Paul  asserts  that  there 
would  be  no  difference  in  advantage  between  the  living 
and  the  dead.  For  the  dead  would  be  Vaised  before  the 
advent  in  sufficient  season  to  come  with  Jesus,  and 
share  equally  with  all  the  faithful  of  God.  Character 
should  fix  destiny.     "The  Son  of  m.an  shall  come  in 


THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD.         99 

Companionship  of  Christ.  "In  the  air." 

the  glory  of  his  Father  with  his  angels  :  and  then  he 
shall  reward  every  man  according  to  his  works." 

4.  Then,  again,  we  are  all  agreed  that  the  great  glory 
of  the  future  state  will  be  found  in  the  personal  compan- 
ionship of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  somewhere.  **Then 
we  which  are  alive  and  remain  shall  be  caught  up  to- 
gether with  them  in  the  clouds,  to  meet  the  Lord  in  the 
air !  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the  Lord. " 

I  do  not  know  any  class  of  expositors  who  believe 
that  saints  are  to  remain,  or  that  Christ  is  to  have  his 
permanent  residence,  *'in  the  air."  Dr.  Candlish,  in 
his  commentary  on  the  Book  of  Genesis,  and  Dr.  Chal- 
mers, in  his  sermon  on  the  New  Heavens  and  the  New 
Earth,  seem  to  have  thought  that  this  world  of  ours  was 
going  to  be  purified  and  then  made  the  home  of  the  re- 
deemed, as  it  once  was  the  home  of  our  holy  race  be- 
fore the  fall.  Many  theologians  believe  that  heaven  is 
a  distinct  place  of  abode  now,  and  will  be  tenanted  by 
all  the  good  and  pure  in  heart,  when  they  shall  see  God. 
There  are  v/ide  differences  here. 

But  most  Christians  arc  quite  under  profound  convic- 
tion that,  as  the  chief  pain  and  penalty  for  the  wicked 
is  that  they  shall  **be  punished  with  everlasting  destruc- 
tion from  the  presence  of  the  Lord,"  so  the  chief  rejoic- 
ing and  glory  for  the  justified  will  be  found  in  the  shar- 
ing of  that  ** presence"  through  eternity.  As  Samuel 
Rutherford  used  to  say,  **  The  Lamb  is  all  the  glory  of 
Immanuel's  land." 

Christian   biography  would  make   very  evident   the 


100  THE   COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

Heavenly  anticipation.  Mr.  Standfast. 

fact  that  the  best  men  and  women  the  world  has  ever 
known  have,  as  they  grew  in  grace,  grown  more  and 
more  in  the  eagerness  of  the  anticipation  with  which 
they  have  longed  for  the  presence  of  Jesus  the  Saviour. 
To  them  heaven  might  have  been  defined  as  the  place 
where  Christ  is.  Its  supreme  joy  would  be  found  in 
the  disclosure  of  his  companionship.  The  weary  will 
have  rest,  the  harassed  will  receive  peace,  the  sad  will 
be  comforted,  the  parted  and  the  pure  will  meet  again. 
All  this  is  full  of  glad  welcome.  But  the  main  antici- 
pation of  spiritual  believers  in  looking  to  the  end  of 
their  journey,  centres  upon  the  person  of  the  divine  Re- 
deemer. 

"  When  Mr.  Standfast  had  thus  set  things  in  order, 
and  the  time  being  come  for  him  to  haste  him  away,  he 
also  went  down  to  the  river.  Now  there  was  a  great 
calm  at  that  time  in  the  river ;  wherefore  Mr.  Standfast, 
when  he  was  about  half  way  in,  stood  av>^hile,  and  talked 
to  his  companions  that  had  waited  upon  him  thither. 
And  he  said  :  '  This  river  has  been  a  terror  to  many ; 
yea,  the  thoughts  of  it  also  have  often  frightened  me  ; 
but  now  methinks  I  stand  easy ;  my  foot  is  fixed  upon 
that  on  which  the  feet  of  the  priests  that  bare  the  ark 
of  the  covenant  stood  while  Israel  went  over  Jordan. 
The  waters  are  indeed  to  the  palate  bitter,  and  to  the 
stomach  cold  ;  yet  the  thoughts  of  what  I  am  going  to, 
and  of  the  convoy  that  await  me  on  the  other  side,  lie 
as  a  glowing  coal  at  my  heart.  I  see  myself  now  at  the 
end  of  my  journey ;  my  toilsome  days  are  ended.     I  am 


THE   COMING   OF  THE   LORD.  lOI 

The  great  comfort.  Friends  gone  before. 

going  to  see  that  head  which  was  crowned  with  thorns, 
and  that  face  which  was  spit  upon  for  me.  I  have  for- 
merly lived  by  hearsay  and  faith  ;  but  now  I  go  where  I 
shall  live  by  sight,  and  shall  be  with  him  in  whose  com- 
pany I  delight  myself.  I  have  loved  to  hear  my  Lord 
spoken  of ;  and  w^hercver  I  have  seen  the  print  of  his 
shoe  in  the  earth,  there  I  have  coveted  to  set  my  foot 
too.  His  name  has  been  to  me  a  civet-box  ;  yea,  sweet- 
er than  all  perfumes.  His  voice  has  been  to  me  most 
sweet :  and  his  countenance  I  have  more  desired  than 
they  that  have  most  desired  the  light  of  the  sun.  His 
words  I  did  use  to  gather  for  my  food,  and  for  antidotes 
against  my  faintings.  He  has  held  me,  and  hath  kept 
me  from  mine  iniquities ;  yea,  my  steps  have  been 
strengthened  in  his  way.'" 

So  much,  then,  for  the  analysis  of  this  most  vv^onder- 
ful  passage.  The  apostle  certainly  prized  the  power  of 
the  great  thoughts  he  was  uttering  ;  for  he  instantly 
presses  the  exhortation  that  they  be  put  to  use  among 
those  to  whom  he  was  writing  :  '*  Wherefore  comfort 
one  another  with  these  words." 

I.  There  is  comfort  in  the  picture  thus  offered  us,  for 
those  who  have  been  bereaved.  Our  friends  are  only 
asleep  ;  they  are  not  lost ;  they  are  with  Christ  now  ; 
they  will  come  back  to  the  earth  when  Jesus  comes  ; 
no  matter  how  long  ago,  no  matter  where,  they  died  ; 
and  they  will  be  forever  with  him  wherever  he  is.  And 
we  shall  be  with  them  in  the  same  blessed  companion- 
ship, shall  know  them  and  dwell  with  them. 


102        THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

Some  will  not  die.  Triumph  in  coming. 

2.  There  is  comfort  in  the  suggestion  that  perhaps  we 
shall  not  have  to  die  after  all.  Some  Christians  are  go- 
ing to  be  alive  at  the  moment  when  Jesus  shall  appear 
in  the  air.  Nobody  loves  death  ;  it  is  the  awful  curse  of 
the  race,  the  sting  of  all  our  experiences.  Nobody  can 
think  of  the  grave  without  shuddering ;  it  seems  dark 
and  chill.  How  fine  it  would  be  to  escape  all  that  ! 
How  glorious  to  believe  it  may  be  possible  that  the 
Lord's  coming  is  so  near  at  hand  now  that  even  the  pale 
invalid  we  are  watching  will  not  be  compelled  to  have 
a  funeral  or  wxar  a  shroud  ! 

3.  There  is  comfort  in  knowing  that  when  the  Lord 
Jesus  comes,  it  will  be  not  as  a  crucified  Nazarene,  but 
as  the  Son  of  God.  He  will  have  a  glorious  retinue, 
and  will  be  known  as  the  King.  All  over  this  world, 
now  for  eighteen  hundred  years,  millions  of  devout  men 
and  brave-hearted  women,  together  with  as  many  more 
trustful  little  children,  have  been  praying,  every  morn- 
ing and  night,  '*  Thy  kingdom  come."  That  prayer  will 
be  heard  by  and  by,  when  the  good  time  arrives.  And 
whoever  is  on  the  Lord's  side  that  day  will  be  glad  to 
meet  him  in  the  splendor  of  his  advent.  He  will  not  be 
put  off  with  a  reed  sceptre  then  ;  he  will  not  wear  robes 
of  mockery.  The  Lamb  of  God  will  then  be  the  Lion 
of  Judah ! 

4.  There  is  comfort  in  holding  communion  even  here 
and  now,  once  in  a  while,  with  a  Redeemer  out  of  sight. 
Under  the  ancient  dispensation,  the  high-priest  wore 
golden  bells  upon  his  garment.     While  he  was  inside  of 


THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD.         IO3 

The  golden  bells.  "  Watching  quietly." 

the  tabernacle  curtains,  the  small,  sweet  sound  of  their 
ringing  could  be  heard  by  the  faithful  people.  Christ, 
the  high-priest  of  our  profession,  is  just  for  a  while  out 
of  our  reach,  within  the  veil  of  the  sanctuary  above  ;  a 
chastened  imagination  can  almost  hear  him  making 
ready  to  come  forth  to  us.  We  must  **  endure,  as  see- 
ing him  who  is  invisible."  And  every  joy  we  have  is  a 
foretaste  and  an  evidence  of  the  fulness  of  joy  herein- 
after to  be  revealed. 

5.  There  is  comfort  in  the  recollection  that  time  hur- 
ries. '*  Now  is  our  salvation  nearer  than  when  we  be- 
lieved." Is  it  possible,  then,  any  truly  Christian  heart 
can  be  alarmed  in  prospect  of  Christ's  coming  ?  What 
is  there  that  one  could  wish  more  devoutly  ?  What  sort 
of  wife  must  she  be,  whose  husband  is  suddenly  an- 
nounced as  returning  from  long  absence  over  the  sea,  if 
she  changes  color  and  seems  abashed  ?  The  church  is 
the  Lamb's  bride  ;  ought  she  not  to  make  herself  ready 
joyously  ?  If  her  life  be  pure,  and  her  heart  loyal,  will 
she  not  hail  the  signs  of  the  advent  ? 

**  So  I  am  watching  quietly 

Every  day  ; 
Whenever  the  sun  shines  brightly, 

I  rise  and  say: 
*  Surely  it  is  the  shining  of  his  face  ! ' 
And  look  upon  the  gates  of  his  high  place 

Beyond  the  sea; 
For  I  know  he  is  coming  shortly 

To  summon  me. 


104        THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

"A  few  more  shadows."  Simon  Peter's  hope. 


And  when  a  shadow  falls  across  the  window 

Of  my  room, 
"Where  I  am  working  my  appointed  task, 
I  lift  my  head  to  watch  the  door  and  ask 

If  he  is  come  ; 
And  then  the  angel  answers  sweetly 

In  my  home  : 
'  Only  a  few  more  shadows. 

And  he  will  come,'  " 

6.  There  is  comfort  in  the  thought  that  every  real 
grace  we  attain  will  give  our  Lord  pleasure  when  he 
comes.  This  is  the  one  thing  in  all  the  dazzling,  deceit- 
ful world  around  us  which  counts  as  an  acquisition. 
Wealth  goes  for  nothing  ;  position  in  society  goes  for 
nothing.  But  faith  and  hope  and  meekness  and  charity 
are  what  he  loves,  and  what  he  will  welcome  when  he 
sees  us  face  to  face.  How  sweet  and  calm  are  the  words 
of  the  fisherman,  Simon  Peter,  writing  in  his  old  age  to 
tried  and  troubled  believers  of  all  time.  Mark  the  ex- 
pressions, **  looking  for  and  hasting  unto." 

**  But  the  day  of  the  Lord  will  come  as  a  thief  in  the 
night ;  in  the  which  the  heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a 
great  noise,  and  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent 
heat,  the  earth  also  and  the  works  that  are  therein  shall 
be  burned  up.  Seeing  then  that  all  the^e  things  shall 
be  dissolved,  what  manner  of  persons  ought  ye  to  be  in 
all  holy  conversation  and  godliness,  looking  for  and 
hasting  unto  the  coming  of  the  day  of  God,  wherein  the 
heavens  being  on  fire  shall  be  dissolved,  and   the  ele- 


THE  COMING  OF  THE   LORD.  105 

The  great  day.  Tamil  saying:. 

ments  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat  ?  Nevertheless  we, 
according  to  his  promise,  look  for  new  heavens  and  a 
new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness.  Wherefore, 
beloved,  seeing  that  ye  look  for  such  things,  be  diligent 
that  ye  may  be  found  of  him  in  peace,  without  spot,  and 
blameless." 

7.  Finally,  there  is  comfort  in  knowing  that  fidelity 
is  all  that  the  Lord  Jesus  demands  at  our  hands  till  he 
comes.  "  For  the  Son  of  man  is  as  a  man  taking  a  far 
journey,  who  left  his  house,  and  gave  authority  to  his 
servants,  and  to  every  man  his  work,  and  commanded 
the  porter  to  watch.  Watch  ye  therefore  ;  for  ye  know 
not  when  the  master  of  the  house  cometh,  at  even,  or 
at  midnight,  or  at  the  cock-crowing,  or  in  the  morn- 
ing." 

It  is  a  Tamil  saying,  that  the  cocoanut  grove  will  not 
flourish,  which  does  not  hear  the  footsteps  of  the  owner 
in  it,  every  day.  It  would  seem  as  if  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  had  designedly  chosen  that  all  religious  life 
should  be  made  up  of  many  little  duties  and  brief  expe- 
riences, so  that  each  believer  should  come  the  oftener 
to  him  for  grace.  He  desires  a  visit  frequently.  What 
he  claims  of  us  here  is  plain  busy  working  in  our  vo- 
cation. No  summons  has  he  issued  that  we  forsake 
home  or  daily  toil.  Only  this  :  wc  are  to  keep  looking 
for  him,  and  showing  the  Lord's  death  ''  till  he  come." 

When  the  men  searched  for  Sir  John  Franklin  in  the 
arctic  seas,  they  came  upon  a  little  boat  out  among  the 
icy  solitudes.  Close  by  the  bleached  skeletons  lay 
5* 


I05        THE  COMING  OF  THE  LORD. 

The  arctic  boat.  "Till  he  come." 

clothing  and  utensils  with  names  engraved ;  and  there 
were  also  Testaments  and  books  of  prayer,  marked  and 
underlined.  Two  double-barreled  guns  —  loaded  and 
ready — resting  over  the  boat's  side,  pointed  upward, 
standing  where  they  were  placed  twelve  years  before. 
These  all  now  lie  in  England's  proudest  museum.  And 
there  is  no  allegory  on  record  among  the  ages,  like  that 
which  those  mute  memorials  speak.  Think  of  the  sol- 
emn picture  ! 

Out  in  the  unknown  polar  ocean — danger  on  every 
hand — no  hope,  and  death  coming  surely;  yet  there 
amid  the  promises  of  God's  word,  and  the  home-peti- 
tions of  devotion,  those  brave  men  sat  and  suffered, 
keeping  their  eyes  open  tow^ard  any  possible  help,  and 
their  muskets  prepared  to  answer  even  the  slightest  sig- 
nal from  among  the  cliffs  of  ice.  So  they  must  have 
lingered  on,  courageous  unto  death.  Be  that  our  pat- 
tern in  the  agitated  life  we  live  ;  faithful  under  the  se- 
verest strain  of  trial,  patient  to  await  its  issue  ;  and  al- 
ways on  the  alert  for  signs  of  the  Lord's  coming. 
*'  Blessed  are  those  servants,  w^hom  the  lord  when  he 
Cometh  shall  find  watching  !  " 


X. 

THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE  WORLD. 

But   godliness   with   contentment   is   great   gain.     For  we 

BROUGHT   nothing    INTO    THIS   WORLD,   AND   IT    IS     CERTAIN    WE 
CAN   CARRY  NOTHING  OUT.— I  Timothy  6  :  6,  7. 

The  freshest  of  fishes  are  sometimes  caught  in  the 
saltest  of  seas.  It  is  quite  possible  for  even  a  truly  re- 
generate man  to  live  in  the  world,  and  yet  never  so 
much  as  be  tainted  by  its  spirit.  He  may  even  vex  his 
righteous  soul  with  the  iniquity  he  meets.  But  if  at 
the  end  of  some  lengthened  years  he  has  no  more  to 
show  for  his  piety  than  Lot  had  when  he  forsook  So- 
dom, we  should  be  at  liberty  to  draw  the  conclusion 
that  his  religion  was  of  a  tame  sort  and  well  broken  in, 
so  as  to  have  been  easily  held  in  hand. 

In  the  midst  of  those  unusually  trying  circumstances 
which  surrounded  the  apostle  Paul,  just  after  his  first 
imprisonment  and  just  before  his  last,  that  ended  in 
martyrdom,  he  seems  finally  to  have  despaired  of  ever 
seeing  again  his  young  friend  Tirnothy,  as  he  had 
hoped.  So  he  writes  him  a  letter,  in  which  he  con- 
structs a  fair  future  for  him.  He  leaves  parting  coun- 
sels to  him,  full  of  wisdom  and  affection.  No  one  can 
fail  to  mark  the  constant  gentleness  of  the  solicitude 
pervading  the  entire  chapters. 


IC8  THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD. 

Godliness  with  contentment.  "  An  Abraham." 

Out  of  this  epistle  has  been  chosen  a  passage  for  the 
study  of  the  young  people  (and  old)  in  the  churches. 
Paul  draws  a  calm  picture  of  what  the  painters  would 
call  ''still  life."  Then  he  suggests  a  vivid  contrast  that 
may  serve  as  an  offset  to  it.  Next  he  recalls  to  Timo- 
thy's mind  an  inspiriting  remembrance.  And  then  he 
utters  an  impressive  admonition,  backed  with  a  singu- 
larly solemn  appeal. 

I.  In  the  picture  here  presented,  there  is  not  much 
which  is  calculated  to  arrest  attention.  Indeed,  the 
language  would  be  pronounced  rather  commonplace. 
When  men  are  in  the  hurry  and  rush  for  wealth,  and 
the  road  is  fairly  dusty  under  the  feet  of  those  who  are 
running,  it  seems  prosaic  for  any  voice  to  speak  thus  : 
"But  godliness  with  contentment  is  great  gain.  For 
w^e  brought  nothing  into  this  world,  and  it  is  certain  we 
can  carry  nothing  out.  And  having  food  and  raiment 
let  us  be  therewith  content." 

A  man,  who  should  soberly  assert  that  he  was  going 
to  construct  a  life  upon  such  a  plain  declaration,  would 
be  voted  a  lunatic  by  most  of  his  fellows.  Indeed,  real 
religious  self-denial  has  always  been  deemed  weakness. 
A  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  people  in  Britain  who 
spoke  the  colloquial  English  language — so  the  pious 
old  Gurnall  tells  us — signified  their  contexnptuous  esti- 
mation of  exact  unworldliness  by  the  nickname  they 
gave.  They  said  of  a  silly  fool,  "He  is  an  Abraham^ 
And  those  of  us  who  were  reared  in  New  England  will 
not  need  to  be  reminded  that  even  now  the  villagers 


THE    CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD.  lOQ 

John  Jacob  Astor.  Godliness  is  gain. 

speak  of  a  temperate  young  man,  weak  in  the  head,  as 
a  '■'■Joseyy  Abraham  left  a  good  place  for  a  poorer  at 
the  call  of  the  Lord.  And  Joseph  refused  sin  when  it 
came  to  him  without  the  seeking.  The  world  will  never 
count  such  things  as  wise  policies. 

It  is  said  that  John  Jacob  Astor  once  replied  to  an  in- 
quisitive man,  who  asked  him  how  much  money  he  had, 
*' Just  enough,  sir,  so  that  I  can  eat  one  dinner  a  day  !" 
How  much  wealth  would  a  man  need  to  enable  him  to 
eat  two  ?  And  does  a  man  want  to  wear  his  overcoat  in 
the  summer  months,  for  fear  people  will  think  he  cannot 
afford  one  ? 

There  is  a  play  upon  words  in  one  of  these  verses 
which  ought  not  to  be  altogether  overlooked.  It  would 
seem  almost  as  if  the  apostle  was  dropping  a  sly  sar- 
casm. Texts  of  Scripture  must  not  be  imagined  to  have 
two  handles  by  v/hich  they  can  be  wielded  indifferently. 
Paul  rebukes  those  who  ''suppose  that  gain  is  godli- 
ness." It  may  be  wholesomely  true  that  ''godliness 
with  contentment  is  great  gain,"  while  it  would  be  dan- 
gerous to  think  that  great  contentment  with  gain  is 
godliness.  But  still  this  same  apostle  presses  the  exact 
promise  elsewhere  :  "  Godliness  is  profitable  unto  all 
things,  having  promise  of  the  life  that  now  is,  and  of 
that  which  is  to  come." 

The  force  falls  here  upon  the  word  "contentment." 
They  say  that  foreigners  have  terrible  inflictions  when 
they  try  to  pronounce  and  spell   our  term  "enough," 


no  THE   CHRISTIAN   IN  THE  WORLD. 

Charles  V.  at  Yuste.  Bells  in  the  steeple. 

And  everybody  knows  that  our  own  countrymen  find 
great  difficulty  in  defining  it. 

Some  people  declare  that  they  are  unwilling  to  try  to 
live  plainly  because  it  looks  like  singularity.  Now 
singularity  differs  very  much  from  individuality.  I  can- 
not say  I  think  that  one  is  improved  by  being  singular. 
To  me  what  Frenchmen  call  outre  appears  like  what  we 
call  outrageous.  But  anybody  Can  afford  to  be  him- 
self. Men  have  no  business  to  be  identical  with  their 
neighbors.  It  takes  everybody  to  make  a  world.  After 
his  abdication,  Charles  V.,  in  his  retirement  at  Yuste, 
spent  his  heavy  moments  in  experimenting  to  make  a 
number  of  watches  keep  the  same  time.  He  failed  con- 
stantly, and  grew  vexed.  But  in  the  end  he  drew  an 
inference  worth  a  record.  He  suddenly  exclaimed : 
"  Here  am  I,  toiling  on  timepieces  to  force  them  to  tick 
alike,  and  making  ridiculous  work  :  how  much  worse  to 
waste  patience  in  trying  to  force  men  and  women  to 
think  alike  or  to  be  alike  !  " 

There  is  an  independence  of  feeling  which  Christian 
men  certainly  cherish  ;  and  in  that  is  found  their  high- 
est joy.  How  pitifully  little  does  a  babe  bring  with  it  ! 
And  how  true  is  the  old  saying  as  to  the  dead  :  *'  Shrouds 
have  no  pockets  !  "  How  sweet  that  honest  satisfaction 
which  has  all  it  wants,  and  wants  but  iittle,  Vv^hile  it 
sings  aloft,  like  Trinity  bells  up  above  Wall  Street,  or 
St.  Paul's  over  Lombard,  serene  and  beautiful  in  the 
clear  air  as  the  great  wild  world  rushes  and  roars  in  its 
tumults  beneath  it ! 


THE   CHRISTIAN   IN  THE  WORLD.  Ill 

Sheer  imitation.  Thought  from  Lacon. 

2.  This  thought  gains  force  from  the  quick  contrast 
with  which  the  apostle  follows  it  in  the  verses  under  our 
eye  :  *'  But  they  that  will  be  rich,  fall  into  temptation, 
and  a  snare,  and  into  many  foolish  and  hurtful  lusts, 
which  drown  men  in  destruction  and  perdition.  For 
the  love  of  money  is  the  root  of  all  evil  ;  which  while 
some  coveted  after,  they  have  erred  from  the  faith,  and 
pierced  themselves  through  with  many  sorrows." 

He  makes  direct  appeal  to  common  observation.  The 
multitudes  rush  after  wealth  and  show,  and  pursue  shad- 
ows all  in  the  same  order  and  in  the  same  way.  Equi- 
pages are  alike  ;  dresses  come  in  patterns  ;  we  put  our 
latch-keys  in-  our  neighbor's  door,  because  the  houses 
are  built  in  regular  blocks,  and  we  cannot  tell  our  own. 
Sheer  imitation  is  the  law  of  fashion  in  both  social  and 
business  life. 

Says  the  thoughtful  author  of  Lacon  :  **  He  that  can 
be  honest  only  because  every  one  else  is  honest,  or  good 
only  because  all  around  him  are  good,  might  have  con- 
tinued an  angel  if  he  had  been  born  one  ;  but  being  a 
man,  he  will  only  add  to  the  number — numberless — who 
go  to  hell  for  the  bad  things  they  have  done,  and  for  not 
doing  the  good  things  they  intended  to  have  done." 

The  result  of  all  this  is  sadness  and  unutterable  dis- 
may. To  have  tried  to  meet  all  the  world's  demands,  and 
then  to  be  rejected  in  the  end,  brings  melancholy.  And 
no  one  feels  consoled  in  his  ''many  sorrows  "  to  remem- 
ber that  he  pierced  himself ''  tlirough  with  them."  Think 
of  the  indescribable  disgust  with  which  the  witty  Dean 


112  THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD. 

"  Prince  Posterity."  Spanish  proverb. 

Swift,  despairing  of  a  living  recognition,  dedicated  one 
of  his  books  to  Prince  Posterity  ! 

The  ancient  motto — "  Speak  fair  words,  and  you  will 
hear  kind  echoes  " — is  not  exactly  true  in  such  a  world 
as  ours.  Something  ridiculously  mortifying  always  hap- 
pens to  the  one  whom  the  populace  praises  into  conceit. 
I  read  only  a  little  while  ago  in  Greek  history,  that  ^s- 
chylus,  the  poet,  was  so  celebrated  by  many  in  his  time, 
that  they  raised  the  story  that  he  could  not  die  save  by 
a  blow  from  high  heaven.  And,  indeed,  it  so  happened 
that  an  eagle  flew  up  with  a  tortoise  in  his  talons,  and, 
desiring  to  break  the  shell,  mistook  the  tragedian's  bald 
head  for  a  stone,  and  so  let  the  heavy  reptile  come  dov/n 
on  it :  thus  was  fuliilled  the  precious  oracle. 

Nobody,  how^ever,  learns  the  lesson.  Yet  the  num- 
ber of  "pierced"  men  increases,  and  a  morose  feeling 
of  discontent  fills  the  air  with  complaints  of  injustice. 
Moments  of  success  are  often  moments  of  mourning. 
Men  at  the  top  of  things  are  oftener  cynical  than  con- 
tented. They  have  reached  their  so-called  prosperity 
just  as  they  have  lost  the  power  to  enjoy  it.  So  they 
greet  your  congratulations  with  a  reply  from  the  Span- 
ish book  of  proverbs:  *'The  gods  give  plenty  of  al- 
monds to  the  toothless  ! " 

Hence  it  comes  to  pass  that  we  can  find  a  large  class 
of  men  concealing  their  real  disappointment  under  a 
sort  of  veil  of  philosophy.  They  say  they  have  reached 
rest  at  last ;  ambition  is  satisfied  ;  strife  is  over ;  all  is 
calm.     But  their  tranquillity  is  only  the  shame  of  what 


THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD.  II3 


"  All  quiet  on  the  Potomac."  Timothy's  childhood, 

novelists  call  disenchantment,  their  passionless  quiet  is 
only  satiety,  their  serenity  is  only  disgust.  It  makes  us 
think  of  that  pathetic  little  card  that  went  the  rounds 
in  the  war  :  a  great  river  swelling  on  in  the  moonlight, 
tv/o  or  three  hillocks  with  headboards  white  under  the 
trees,  no  living  thing  beside  the  soldiers'  graves,  and 
the  motto  '^AU  quiet  on  the  Potomac."  So  worldlings 
quiet  down  at  the  last ;  the  fight  has  brought  no  vic- 
tory, the  weary  march  has  caught  no  triumph  ;  the  light 
is  but  a  night-light,  the  stillness  is  nothing  more  than 
the  solemnity  of  death. 

3.  The  vision  grows  weird  :  it  is  a  relief  to  turn  nov/ 
to  the  inspiriting  remembrance  which  the  apostle  recalls 
to  his  young  friend's  mind.  With  most  rapid  reversal, 
he  shows  better  cheer  :  ''  But  thou,  O  man  of  God,  flee 
these  things  ;  and  follov/  after  righteousness,  godliness, 
faith,  love,  patience,  meekness.  Fight  the  good  fight 
of  faith,  lay  hold  on  eternal  life,  whercunto  thou  art 
also  called,  and  hast  professed  a  good  profession  before 
many  witnesses." 

In  this  way  he  calls  Timothy's  recollection  to  the  fact 
that  he  was  an  acknowledged  and  covenanted  child  of 
God.  What  his  mother  Eunice  and  his  grandmother 
Lois  had  pledged  for  him,  he  had  himself  deliberately 
accepted  ;  so  he  was  now  irrevocably  bound  to  a  pure 
religious  life. 

How  far  one's  public  profession  of  faith  may  be 
pressed  as  a  motive  to  unswei-ving  fidelity  ;  what  is  the 
value  of  a  piety  which  is  held  to  consistency  by  the  con- 


114  THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD. 

Simon  Stylites.  "Patriarchal  gold-fish." 

sciousness  of  a  promise  made  before  *'  many  witnesses," 
it  is  not  precisely  easy  to  say.  But  surely  no  one  can 
doubt  that  the  appeal  is  legitimate.  When  old  Simon 
Stylites  put  a  railing  around  the  top  of  the  stone  pillar 
he  lived  upon,  in  order  to  keep  him  from  falling  off  over 
the  edge,  people  laughed,  and  said  sainthood  was  quite 
possible  when  so  thoroughly  protected.  But  it  was 
wild  bravado  for  him  to  tear  the  barriers  away,  after  he 
had  become  used  to  them.  We  are  all  creatures  of  law. 
Restraints,  if  not  leaned  upon,  have  a  registered  worth 
as  helps.  In  one  of  her  bright  books,  George  Eliot 
suggests  as  a  somewhat  quaint  figure  for  our  use  the 
conduct  of  a  ** patriarchal  gold-fish"  in  a  glass  globe. 
From  long  experience  this  sagacious  creature  had 
learned  just  how  far  to  swim  inside  of  the  transparent 
limit  so  as  to  avoid  striking  the  hard  crystal  with  its 
nose.  Thus  it  felt  without  feeling,  and  knew  without 
recognizing,  exactly  when  to  turn  in  its  course  with  a 
beautiful  curve  of  avoidance.  I  judge  that  if  one's 
*' profession  "  be  employed,  not  as  a  fret  and  restriction, 
but  as  a  friendly  reminder  of  the  line  between  the  world 
and  the  church,  it  will  be  of  permanent  value. 

But  the  solid  meaning  of  the  counsel  lies  here.  Con- 
version is  admitted  as  a  grand  necessity  and  an  essential 
fact.  But  it  is  the  after-life  which  giv«es  the  anxiety. 
It  may  as  well  be  said  at  once,  and  with  all  intensity, 
that  any  man  will  fail  of  excellence  utterly,  and  will  be- 
come lamentably  a  backslider,  who  does  not  immedi- 
ately on  his  renunciation  of  the  world  construct  a  new 


lliE   CHRISTIAN  IN  THE   WORLD.  1 15 

Construct  a  new  life.  A  bankrupt. 

life  and  begin  to  live  in  it.  Timothy  must  be  taught 
what  to  ''flee,"  but,  more  yet,  what  to  "follow."  No 
man  will  be  able  to  get  on,  or  even  to  stand,  unless  he 
manages  to  make  more  of  his  Christian  experience  than 
a  mere  series  of  restraints  and  self-denials.  He  cannot 
live  upon  negatives. 

Religion  has  within  its  reach  a  whole  fresh  world  of 
delightful  occupation.  The  best  part  of  any  beautiful 
city  is  always  found  a  good  distance  inside  of  the  forti- 
fications erected  for  defences.  So  the  real  resources  of 
believing  life  are  attained  a  great  way  this  side  of  the 
catechism  commandments  with  their  "  requirings  and 
forbiddings"  of  bristling  conflict.  One  will  miss  the 
very  essence  and  meaning  of  personal  piety,  if  he  sup- 
poses it  merely  to  be  an  arrest  and  confinement  of  the 
soul  in  order  to  deliver  it  from  the  onsets  of  irresistible 
sins — resembling,  perhaps,  that  merciful  imprisonment 
sometimes  given  by  his  friends  to  a  bankrupt,  with  a 
hope  of  defending  him  from  being  torn  to  pieces  by  im- 
placable creditors  ;  it  is  not  that,  indeed. 

The  reason  why  so  many  people  backslide  after  what 
they  assume  to  be  conversion  is  found  exactly  here  :  they 
will  not  enter  the  new  world  which  the  gospel  provides, 
and  so  will  not  consent  to  live  up  to  their  own  privileges. 
They  try  to  sustain  a  precarious  foothold  upon  the  world 
they  profess  to  be  leaving.  Hence  they  keep  making 
ungenerous  comparisons.  They  permit  many  an  unlaw- 
ful hankering  after  surrendered  lusts.  Whereas  the  gos- 
pel adopts  and  announces  a  single  standard.     If  one  is 


Il6  THE   CHRISTIAN   IN   THE   WORLD. 

Holiness  means  wholeness.  The  final  charge. 

not  with  Christ,  he  is  against  him.  Half -love  is  whole 
mockery.  If  a  man  claims  to  be  a  Christian,  he  must 
instantly  be  naturalized  in  the  realm  he  has  entered. 
Holi?tess  is  simply  the  old  strong  Saxon  for  wholeness. 

That  Vv^ord  "wholly"  is  a  fine  word.  It  can  be  fol- 
lowed all  over  the  Bible  with  a  concordance  to  the  profit 
of  us  all.  Paul  told  Timothy  to  put  his  entire  self  into 
his  work  :  ''  Meditate  upon  these  things  ;  give  thyself 
wholly  to  them  ;  that  thy  profiting  may  appear  to  all." 
No  person  ever  accomplished  anything  in  this  world 
who  went  at  his  task  half-heartedly.  So  he  says  else- 
where to  all  Christians  :  "And  the  very  God  of  peace 
sanctify  you  wholly  :  and  I  pray  God  your  whole  spirit 
and  soul  and  body  be  preserved  blameless  unto  the  com- 
ing of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

4.  And  now  this  true  friend  closes  his  words  with  the 
utterance  of  a  most  impressive  admonition  :  "I  give  thee 
charge  in  the  sight  of  God,  who  quickeneth  all  things, 
and  before  Christ  Jesus,  who  before  Pontius  Pilate  wit- 
nessed a  good  confession  ;  that  thou  keep  this  command- 
ment without  spot,  unrebukable,  until  the  appearing  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  :  which  in  his  times  he  shall  show, 
who  is  the  blessed  and  only  Potentate,  the  King  of  kings, 
and  Lord  of  lords  ;  who  only  hath  immortality,  dwelling 
in  the  light  which  no  man  can  approadi  unto  ;  whom 
no  man  hath  seen,  nor  can  see  :  to  whom  be  honor  and 
power  everlasting.     Amen." 

Some  young  people  are  imagining  themselves  tired  of 
a  religious  life  already:  are  you  sure  you  actually  know 


THE   CHRISTIAN   IN  THE   WORLD.  IT/ 

Tired  of  religious  life.  The  shepherd-boy. 

anything  about  true  religious  life  ?  Have  you  ever  cast 
your  lot  luholly  in  with  Christ  and  his  friends,  with  a 
cheerful  determination  to  find  what  are  their  pleasures 
and  their  joys  ?  Have  you  ever  really  set  out  to  take 
your  chances  with  the  people  of  God?  And  are  you 
forced  now  to  confess  that  you  have  exhausted  the  en- 
tire round  of  legitimate  happiness,  used  up  Christian 
amusements,  and  squeezed  out  all  the  juices  from  even 
the  richest  fruits  growling  on  the  tree  of  life  ?  Is  it  a 
fact  that  the  gospel  fails  in  its  promise  ? 

"  How  is  it  that  thou  hast  found  it  so  quickly,  my 
son  ? "  Well,  if  you  are  tired  of  the  New  Testament, 
will  you  read  a  bit  of  Pilgrim's  Progress,  which  I  some- 
times think  stands  next  to  it  ?  There  was  a  shepherd- 
boy,  who  was  overheard  singing  in  a  gentle  voice  by 
himself  ;  Great-heart  called  attention  to  his  song  : 

*'IIe  that  is  clown  needs  fear  no  fallj 
He  that  is  low,  no  pride ; 
He  that  is  humble  ever  shall 
Have  God.  to  be  hii  guide." 

-  It  was  this  lad  who  lived  the  merriest  life,  and  had 
most  of  the  herb  called  heart's-ease  in  his  bosom.  Pie 
dwelt  in  the  Valley  of  Humiliation. 

Did  you  ever  watch  a  happy  bird  poised  on  a  branch 
in  the  tree  ?  To  you  the  twig  on  which  he  rested  seemed 
exceedingly  slender  and  unsafe,  but  there  he  tossed  and 
floated  and  swayed  in  the  v/ind  ;  there  he  joyously  sang 
and  sported  ;  careless  whether  the  spray  bent  or  broke 


Il8  THE  CHRISTIAN  IN  THE  WORLD. 

A  bird  on  a  twig.  Ancient  baptisms. 

the  next  moment.  For  folded  at  his  side  he  had  ivings. 
If  he  fell,  he  simply  fell  on  his  feathers,  and  rested  as 
he  rose.  The  sky  was  his  home.  It  was  only  just  for 
the  moment  he  stopped  at  the  forest.  He  could  make 
use  of  any  convenient  leaf,  twig,  or  trunk  in  it,  but  not 
even  the  whole  wood  could  injure  or  hinder  him.  Piety 
is  the  soul's  pinions  as  well  as  its  plumage.  It  beauti- 
fies it  at  the  moment  it  sustains  it.  Even  in  the  world, 
the  Christian  has  ''godliness  with  contentment,"  and 
finds  it  ''great  gain."  But  he  can  leave  it  any  time  at 
God's  will. 

Read  over  once  more  this  appeal  at  the  end  of  the 
passage.  At  ancient  baptisms,  the  officiating  minister 
used  to  fold  the  white  linen  garment  which  the  young 
Christian  wore,  and  hand  it  back  to  him  :  then  he  would 
say,  "  See  thou  present  this  robe  of  your  profession 
spotless  at  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ ! " 


XL 

THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN. 

Put  them  in  mind  to  be  subject  to  principalities  and  powers, 

TO  OBEY  magistrates,  TO  BE  READY  TO  EVERY  GOOD  WORK, 
TO  SPEAK  EVIL  OF  NO  MAN,  TO  BE  NO  BRAWLERS,  BUT  GENTLE, 
SHOWING  ALL  MEEKNESS   UNTO  ALL  MEN. —  Titus  2'-  I.  2. 

Perhaps  no  finer  proof  of  the  one  inalienable  sense  of 
our  common  humanity  can  be  furnished  at  an  instant 
call,  than  what  is  given  in  the  fact  that  a  great  picture 
derives  the  most  of  its  power  from  the  presence  in  it  of 
some  one,  or  more  than  one,  human  figure  ;  and  spe- 
cially when  that  figure  represents  an  individual  in  the 
extremity  of  emotion,  of  penitence  or  passion,  or  even 
of  physical  pain.  Andromeda,  fast  to  the  wild  rock, 
constrains  us  to  gaze  upon  herself  more  than  upon  the 
monster  which  threatens  or  the  champion  who  advances 
to  deliver  her.  Prometheus,  bound  to  the  cliff-side,  riv- 
ets our  eyes  upon  him  as  possessing  an  energy  of  awful 
appeal  far  beyond  the  majesty  of  the  ocean  before  him, 
or  the  wrath  of  high  heaven  gathered  in  blackness  over- 
head. For  he  is  a  man,  and  we  are  men  ;  so  we  instinc- 
tively and  inevitably  take  sides  with  him  in  the  fight  of 
forces. 

Something  like  this  is  the  feeling  with  which,  in  ima- 
gination, we  contemplate  the  life  and  times  of  Paul,  or 


120  THE   CHRISTIAN    CITIZEN. 

A  good  man  solitary.  The  "  little  bird." 

of  Titus,  the  youthful  preacher  to  Avhom  he  once  sent 
an  epistle.  Let  some  historicpJ  artist  draw  for  us  a  pic- 
ture of  the  Roman  empire  as  it  then  was.  Our  atten- 
tion would  be  more  quickly  arrested  by  the  forms  of 
those  few  Christians  Avho  appeared  in  it,  than  by  any 
mere  political  grandeur  or  showy  social  life  which  it  ex- 
hibited in  colors  no  matter  how  glowing.  ''A  good 
man  struggling  with  adversity  is  a  sight  for  the  gods  to 
look  at."  So  those  old  Latin  people  used  to  say  in  their 
poems.  We  are  sure  that  no  spectacle  is  more  attrac- 
tive, in  our  easy  day,  than  that  of  one  of  those  patient, 
early  evangelists  surrounded  by  the  heathen^  A  gen- 
eral sense  of  solitariness  per\^ades  the  scene,  actually 
heightened  by  the  pathos  of  the  single-handed  soldier 
of  the  cross  holding  his  place  with  sad  bravery  and 
hopeless  valor.  Fidelity  will  be  rewarded,  but  martyr- 
dom is  near. 

It  makes  one  think  of  the  ancient  and  well-known  in- 
genuity of  artistic  skill.  Solitude  is  best  represented 
on  canvas  by  a  life  in  the  midst  of  the  loneliness — the 
loneliness  vast,  the  life  small  and  at  a  disadvantage. 
We  all  remember  the  anecdote  of  that  painter  v/ho  had 
pictured  his  deserted  forest — wild,  forsaken,  dreary — 
but  away  down  in  a  corner,  on  a  twig  of  a  blasted  tree, 
sat  a  diminutive  sparrow,  evidently  bereayed  of  its  mate. 
Many  bystanders  in  the  gallery  felt  what  they  could  not 
criticise.  But  the  great  artist  Turner  moved  up  quietly 
behind  his  comrade,  and  with  eyes  full  of  moisture  said, 
*'  I  saw  your  little  bird  !  " 


THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN.  121 

All  ulone  in  Crete.  Obey  the  law. 

Take  that  third  chapter  of  the  epistle  to  Titus,  and 
let  us  read  over  the  verses  together.  Vividly  conceive 
of  this  young  man  surrounded  by  a  world  of  wickedness 
and  wrong,  and  then  listen  to  Paul,  the  aged,  as  he 
talks. 

I.  The  very  earliest  lesson  which  is  suggested  is,  that 
individual  excellence  is  what  makes  national  strength. 
For  there  can  be  no  mistaking  of  the  directness  of  the 
apostle's  counsel.  He  tells  Titus  that  he  must  preach 
personal  purity,  obedience,  and  peace,  to  all  the  citizens 
around  him  :  *'Put  them  in  mind  to  be  subject  to  prin- 
cipalities and  powers,  to  obey  magistrates,  to  be  ready 
to  every  good  work,  to  speak  evil  of  no  man,  to  be  no 
brawlers,  but  gentle,  showing  all  meekness  unto  all 
men." 

We  must  remember  that  the  case  was  hard  just  at  that 
time.  On  the  imperial  throne  sat  a  miscreant  no  less 
conspicuous  and  intolerable  than  Nero.  His  name  has 
been  handed  down  along  the  ages  as  one  of  the  vilest 
and  wickedest  rulers  the  world  ever  knew.  Yet  Paul 
exhorted  all  Christians  to  abide  steadily  in  a  life  of  law 
and  order.  But  it  required  a  great  grace  of  patience  to 
respect  such  ''  powers"  as  v/ere  at  the  head  of  the  gov- 
ernment in  Titus's  day. 

We  have  our  croakers  now,  finding  avast  deal  of  fault 
with  those  in  the  lead  of  affairs  in  republican  America. 
It  ought  to  arrest  attention  of  such  that  the  apostle,  even 
in  worse  circumstances  than  any  we  ever  yet  have  known 
in  our  land,  said,  as  Simon  Peter  said  likewise  :  "  Obey 


122    ^  THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN. 

Cretians  always  liars.  True  charity. 

your  magistrates,  be  subject  to  the  higher  powers :  sub- 
mit yourselves  to  every  ordinance  of  man  for  the  Lord's 
sake  :  whether  it  be  to  the  king,  as  supreme  ;  or  unto 
governors,  as  unto  them  that  are  sent  by  him  for  the 
punishment  of  evil-doers,  and  for  the  praise  of  them  that 
do  well." 

Then  think  what  a  vile  herd  of  common  creatures 
this  young  Christian  had  around  him.  He  was  dwelling 
in  Crete,  an  island  in  the  Mediterranean  now  called 
Candia.  The  inhabitants  were  reckoned  as  among  the 
worst  in  the  world  ;  and  they  are  the  hardest  people  in 
the  East  now.  They  were  the  proverbial  "  liars  "  of  the 
age.  A  hundred  great  cities  told  of  their  wealth  and 
prosperity.  But  the  citizens  were  violent  and  quarrel- 
some, coarse  and  profane,  licentious  and  untrustworthy. 
"  One  of  themselves,  even  a  prophet  of  their  own,  said, 
*  The  Cretians  are  always  liars,  evil  beasts,  slow  bellies.'  " 
Yet  Paul  told  Titus  to  be  patient  and  keep  his  temper. 
A  gentleman  is  only  a  ''gentle  "  man  ;  politeness  is  (ety- 
mologically)  good  citizenship.  "  For  the  grace  of  God 
that  bringeth  salvation,  hath  appeared  to  all  men,  teach- 
ing us,  that,  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we 
should  live  soberly,  righteously  and  godly,  in  this  pres- 
ent world." 

2.  Hence  a  second  lesson  follows  right  on  this  :  Char- 
ity to  others  is  best  promoted  by  an  honest  consideration 
of  what  we  are  ourselves.  No  man,  who  is  conscientious, 
can  fail  to  remember  many  a  mean  act  he  has  during  his 
life  committed.      Most  of  us  could  tell  the  day  and  the 


THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN.  1 23 

Patriotism,  "  the  last  refuge."  Sir  Robert  Walpole, 

hour  when  we  did  palpable  injustice  to  some  one — we 
were  inconsiderate,  selfish,  suspicious  ;  we  pushed  too 
hard  and  drove  one  who  was  w^eaker  to  the  wall ;  we  in- 
terjected into  some  mind  a  vein  of  bitterness  for  all 
time  ;  we  indulged  personal  tastes  and  appetites  to  the 
worry  and  pain  of  some  who  loved  us  dearly.  "  For  we 
ourselves  also  were  sometimes  foolish,  disobedient,  de- 
ceived, serving  divers  lusts  and  pleasures,  living  in  mal- 
ice and  envy,  hateful,  and  hating  one  another." 

It  is  very  hard  to  rise  above  the  social  or  domestic  at- 
mosphere we  are  accustomed  to  breathe,  so  as  to  inhale 
the  serener  air  on  the  elevated  plains  of  purity  and  jus- 
tice and  eternal  right.  But  men  must  be  willing  to  be 
odd  in  order  to  be  honest.  "  Live  with  your  century," 
says  Schiller,  *'but  be  not  its  creature;  bestow  upon 
your  contemporaries,  not  what  they  praise,  but  what 
they  need." 

What  is  the  use  of  continuous  railing  at  public  men  ? 
Is  anybody  happier  in  quoting  the  cynic  Dr.  Johnson : 
**  Patriotism  is  the  last  refuge  of  a  scoundrel  ? "  Sir 
Robert  Walpole  observed  once  it  was  fortunate  that  few 
men  could  be  prime  ministers  ;  because  it  was  fortunate 
that  few  men  could  know  the  abandoned  profligacy  of 
the  human  mind  ;  and  he  added,  with  his  well-known 
sarcasm,  that  every  individual  had  his  price. 

Thus  the  man  who  carps  most  is  the  one  who  falls 
quickest.  If  all  men  have  their  price,  what  was  Wal- 
pole's  ?  Is  it  any  worse  meanness  for  little  men  to  be 
bought  up,  than  for  big  men  (who  know  better)  to  buy 


124  THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN. 

Havelock's  men.  Cannon  and  coin. 

them  ?  Did  you  ever  see  a  foolish  farmer's  boy,  trim- 
ming trees,  cut  off  the  very  branch  he  was  sitting  on, 
sawing  through  between  himself  and  the  trunk  ? 

3.  We  move  on  to  reach  a  third  lesson.  The  apostle 
tells  Titus  that  he  will  make  the  better  citizen  the  often- 
er  he  recalls  to  mind  how  much  he  owes,  and  must  for- 
ever owe,  to  sovereign  grace,  as  a  child  of  God  and  an 
heir  of  heaven  :  '*  But  after  that  the  kindness  and  love 
of  God  our  Saviour  toward  man  appeared,  not  by  works 
of  righteousness  which  we  have  done,  but  according  to 
his  mercy  he  saved  us,  by  the  washing  of  regeneration, 
and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  he  shed  on  us 
abundantly  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour  ;  that,  be- 
ing justified  by  his  grace,  v/e  should  be  made  heirs  ac- 
cording to  the  hope  of  eternal  life." 

People  nov/adays  are  excessively  diffident  in  attribut- 
ing their  successes  or  their  virtues  to  their  piety.  Yet 
now  and  then  the  world  will  find  it  out  for  itself. 
*'  Havelock's  men  "  in  campaigns  wrote  their  record  by 
their  prayers  as  well  as  by  their  prowess.  In  our  own 
war  there  was  a  regiment  that  loved  to  march  into  bat- 
tle singing  the  refrain,  "  I'm  going  home,  to  die  no 
more!"  They  got  the  nickname,  of  course,  and  were 
called  the  *' Die-no-mores."  But  officers  observed  that 
these  tranquil  men  stood  while  others  failed,  and  did  not 
cower  nor  whine  when  they  were  wounded. 

Philip  of  Macedon  used  to  boast  that  he  had  taken  a 
great  many  more  towns  in  his  campaigns  with  silver 
than  he  had  with  iron.     Soldiers  of  the  cross  surely 


THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN.  1 25 

Rutherford  in  Aberdeen.  Our  early  history. 

ought  never  to  be  bought  in  with  corruption.  But 
they  must  remember  that  Satan  has  coin  as  well  as  can- 
non, and  what  onsets  of  violence  are  sometimes  quite 
imable  to  accomplish,  seductions  of  vice  will  often  bring 
about. 

The  highest  motive,  and  the  sweetest  solace,  that  ever 
swayed  or  soothed  human  experience,  lies  in  the  simple, 
grand  recollection,  *'  I  am  God's  own  child  by  grace,  my 
Saviour  is  his  only  begotten  Son,  and  heaven  is  my 
home  because  he  loves  me  ! " 

When  the  world  pursues  a  Christian,  with  that  hope 
in  his  heart,  it  usually  finds  him  far  out  of  reach. 
Think  of  good  old  Rutherford  writing  from  the  prison 
of  Aberdeen.  He  repeats  the  words  of  the  prophet, 
"  And  a  man  shall  be  as  an  hiding-place  from  the  wind, 
and  a  covert  from  the  tempest ;  as  rivers  of  water  in  a 
dry  place  ;  as  the  shadow  of  a  great  rock  in  a  weary 
land."  And  then  he  adds:  **  I  creep  under  my  Lord's 
wings  in  the  great  shower,  and  the  waters  cannot  reach 
me.  Let  fools  laugh  the  fools'  laughter  and  scorn 
Christ,  and  bid  the  weeping  captives  in  Babylon  sing 
them  one  of  the  songs  of  Zion.  We  may  sing,  even  in 
our  winter's  tempest,  in  the  expectation  of  our  sum- 
mer's sun  at  the  turn  of  the  year.  No  created  powers 
in  hell,  or  out  of  hell,  can  mar  our  Lord's  work,  or 
spoil  our  song  of  joy.  Let  us  then  be  glad  and  rejoice 
in  the  salvation  of  our  Lord  ;  for  faith  hath  never  yet 
the  cause  to  have  tearful  eyes  or  a  saddened  brow." 

Surely,  patriotism  rooted  in  personal  piety  ought  to 


126  THE  CHRISTIAN  CITIZEN. 

Jewish  weddings.  Pierpont's  hymn. 

be  found  in  our  land  more  frequently  than  anywhere 
else  in  the  world.  The  early  colonies  which  started 
these  States  were  all  missionary  associations.  The 
foundations  of  this  republic  were  laid  with  prayers  and 
tears  of  devout  and  self-sacrificing  men.  At  every  Jew- 
ish wedding,  the  bride  spills  on  the  floor  the  wine  that 
is  handed  her,  to  denote  that  Israel's  spiritual  glory  has 
passed  av/ay ;  and  then  in  turn  the  groom  breaks  the 
goblet,  to  show  that  her  temporal  dominion  is  also  in 
ruins.  Oh,  if  the  time  ever  comes,  when  our  own  dear 
country  shall  experience  a  like  desolation,  when  the  sad 
bride  of  a  mournful  groom  shall  need  to  dash  at  her 
feet  the  glittering  emblems  of  national  destruction,  it 
wdll  be  because  we  have  forgotten  the  God  whom  our 
fathers  honored,  and  suffered  the  walls  of  his  Zion  to 
crumble  under  the  derelictions  of  our  service  and  the 
weakness  of  our  faith  !     Let  us  hope  for  better  things. 

*'  The  pilgrim  spirit  has  not  fled  ; 

It  walks  in  the  noon's  broad  light  ; 
It  watches  the  bed  of  the  glorious  dead, 

With  the  holy  stars  by  night — 
It  watches  the  bed  of  the  brave  who  have  bled, 

And  shall  guard  the  ice-bound  shore, 
Till  the  waves  of  the  bay,  where  the  Mayflower  lay,  ] 

Shall  foam  and  freeze  no  more  ! " 

4.  Finally,  the  apostle  adds  a  lesson  for  his  friend 
Titus  about  his  preaching,  which  every  Christian,  try- 
ing to  instruct  others,  might  lay  well  to  heart ;  namely, 
that  the  best  of  all  teaching  in  truth  is  the  teaching  of  a 


THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN.  12/ 

Young  convert's  peril.  Maurice's  motto. 

true  life.  He  tries  to  lead  him  away  from  mere  formu- 
las, and  force  him  to  deal  with  real  things  in  a  real  way 
for  greatest  good  :  ''  This  is  a  faithful  saying  ;  and  these 
things  I  will  that  thou  affirm  constantly ;  that  they  which 
have  believed  in  God  might  be  careful  to  maintain  good 
works.  These  things  are  good  and  profitable  unto  men. 
But  avoid  foolish  questions,  and  genealogies,  and  con- 
tentions, and  strivings  about  the  law ;  for  they  are  un- 
profitable and  vain." 

"After  the  first  phase  of  Christian  life,"  remarks 
Merle  d'Aubigne,  ''  in  which  a  man  thinks  only  of 
Christ,  there  usually  ensues  a  second,  v/nen  the  Chris- 
tian will  not  voluntarily  w^orship  with  assemblies  op- 
posed to  his  personal  convictions."  That  is  a  gentle 
way  of  saying  that,  after  a  new  convert  cools  a  little  in 
piety,  he  takes  a  time  of  becoming  denominational  and 
belligerent.  Perhaps  the  apostle  Paul  imagined  Titus 
was  going  to  do  that,  and  so  told  him  he  had  better  not. 

If  there  be  any  truth  in  the  line  *'  The  child  is  father 
of  the  man,"  it  is  manifest  most  plainly  in  religious 
life.  The  young  believer  perpetuates  himself  in  the 
old.  Maurice,  son  of  William  the  Silent,  at  the  age  of 
seventeen,  took  for  his  device  a  fallen  oak,  with  a  young 
sapling  springing  from  its  root ;  to  this  he  gave  the 
motto,  Tandem  fit  sur cuius  arbor ^  *'  The  sapling  w^U  by 
and  by  become  a  tree."  It  seems  very  trite  to  write  all 
that  out  soberly  ;  but  really  it  is  a  thing  most  unfortu- 
nately forgotten. 

Some  young  citizens  are  ambitious  to  get  a  name,  and 


128  THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN. 

Cato's  suggestion.  Real  usefulness. 

help  give  a  name  to  their  country.  Cato  once  remarked 
most  suggestively  that  he  would  rather  posterity  should 
inquire  why  no  statues  had  ever  been  erected  to  him, 
than  why  some  were.  It  is  a  better  thing  to  be  than  to 
do.  A  life  is  a  nobler  gift  to  one's  country  than  any 
achievement.  I  would  rather  that  some  dear  friend,  in 
the  quiet  hour  when  he  was  thinking  of  me,  should  say 
*'  He  was  thoughtful  for  the  right,  and  not  so  much  for 
the  brilliant ;  he  said  little,  but  he  lived  trice ;  he  stood, 
when  it  would  have  been  easy  to  break  ;  he  wa,s  *  careful 
to  maintain  good  works  ; '  he  saw  the  truth,  and  loved 
it  to  the  end," — I  would  rather  one  said  that  of  me,  than 
that  he  said  I  was  one  of  the  marked  men  of  my  age. 

And  then  as  to  usefulness  also  ;  how  may  a  young 
Christian  do  most  good  ?  I  answer,  by  being  good  him- 
self. What  a  work  this  is  for  us  all,  like  the  young 
Titus,  to  be  permitted  to  hold  to  thirsty  lips  the  water 
of  life,  then  to  mark  how  they  drink  it,  how  they  are 
instantly  quickened  and  begin  to  sing  !  Possibly  some 
Christians  are  discouraged  when  they  think  of  poor 
results.  Perhaps  you  never  were  made  the  instrument 
in  converting  a  single  soul  as  yet.  There  is  no  reason 
why  you  should  not  be.  You  long  for  this  reward  ;  very 
well,  portion  it  out  for  yourself  ;  it  is  attainable.  Put 
a  sign  upon  it  for  your  possession  in  the^ight  of  God  ; 
say  prayerfully,  *'  Give  m.e  the  supreme  grace  of  turn- 
ing this  sinner  to  the  cross  ; "  he  will  give  it  to  you  ; 
and  it  is  worth  your  choice. 

I  choose  to  fortify  this  point  by  a  personal  reminis- 


THE   CHRISTIAN   CITIZEN.  1 29 

The  five-barred  gate.  Pay  son's  exultation. 

cence.  Out  from  my  early,  and  sometimes  erring,  min- 
istry comes  an  aifectionate  memory  of  the  past.  Some 
few  grown  young  men  in  my  congregation,  seeing  the 
silly  pride  which  made  many  of  their  own  age  forsake 
the  Sabbath-school  as  they  came  on  in  years,  organized 
themselves  into  a  Bible-class,  and  took  turns  in  its  lead- 
ership. They  planted  their  curved  seat  close  by  the 
door,  and  sent  their  name  to  me,  as  it  appeared  on  the 
list — "  The  Pastor's  Five-barred  Gate."  Year  after  year 
they  kept  their  position,  growing  in  grace,  as  they  grew 
in  knowledge  of  the  w^ord.  Nobody  raised  the  question 
in  that  school  thereafter.  Any  vain  pupil  who  would 
be  wise  (Job  11  :  12),  though  "born  like  a  wild  ass's 
colt,"  had  to  leap  that  five-barred  gate  to  get  out  of  the 
blessed  enclosure.  I  have  lived  long  since  then,  seen 
those  dear  friends  rise  into  honor  and  usefulness  in  the 
church  of  Christ,  despite  of  their  odd  name.  And  grate- 
fully, I  here  acknowledge  the  power  of  their  simple- 
hearted  fidelity. 

A  Sunday-school  class  is  only  a  little  congregation  of 
five  or  ten,  and  the  teacher  is  its  preacher  as  truly  as 
Titus  was  *'  bishop  "  in  Crete.  Said  the  dying  Payson  : 
"  Oh  !  if  ministers  only  saw  the  inconceivable  glory  that 
is  before  them,  and  only  felt  the  preciousness  of  Christ, 
they  would  not  be  able  to  refrain  from  going  about,  leap- 
ing, and  clapping  their  hands  for  joy,  exclaiming,  *  I'm 
a  minister  of  Christ !  Fm  a  minister  of  Christ ! '  " 
6* 


XII. 

SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE. 

"Which  are  a  shadow  of  things  to  come  ;  but  the  body  is  of 
Christ. — Colossians  2  :  17. 

Most  enthusiastic  readers  of  the  Holy  War  will  recall 
one  passage  of  singular  interest,  in  which  Bunyan  relates 
that  upon  a  time  Immanuel  the  prince  made  a  feast  for 
the  town  of  Mansoul,  and  the  folk  came  together  to  the 
castle  to  partake  of  his  banquet.  There  was  food  fur- 
nished from  his  father's  court ;  there  was  music  also  all 
the  while  at  the  table  ;  and,  after  the  feast  was  over, 
Immanuel  was  for  entertaining  the  town  with  some  cu- 
rious riddles  of  secrets,  drawn  up  by  his  father's  secre- 
tary, by  the  wisdom  and  skill  of  Shaddai ;  the  like  to 
these  there  arc  not  in  any  kingdom.  The  riddles  were 
made  upon  King  Shaddai  himself,  and  upon  Immanuel 
his  son,  and  upon  his  wars  and  doings  with  Man- 
soul. 

So  the  story  runs  on  :  *'  Immanuel  also  expounded 
unto  them  some  of  those  riddles  himself,  but,  oh,  how 
they  were  lightened  !  They  saw  what  tljey  never  saw 
before  ;  they  could  not  have  thought  that  such  rarities 
could  have  been  couched  in  so  few  and  such  ordinary 
words.  Yea,  v/hcn  these  riddles  were  opened,  the  peo- 
ple gathered  that  the  things  themselves  were  a  kind  of 


SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE.  131 

Feast  in  Mansoul.  "  The  body  is  of  Christ." 

portraiture,  and  that  of  Immanuel  himself.  For  when 
they  read  in  the  scheme  where  the  riddles  were  writ, 
and  looked  in  the  face  of  the  prince,  things  seemed  so 
like  one  to  the  other  that  Mansoul  could  not  forbear 
but  say — *  This  is  the  Lamb,  this  is  the  Sacrifice,  this  is 
the  Rock,  this  is  the  Red  Heifer,  this  is  the  Door,  and 
this  is  the  Way ' — with  a  great  many  other  things 
more." 

At  the  bottom, of  the  page,  one  finds  the  foot-note  of 
stiff  explanation,  quaint  and  stately  as  usual :  **  The  rid- 
dles seem  to  refer  chiefly  to  the  types  of  Christ,  which 
abound  in  the  Scriptures,  and  which  are  full  of  divine 
entertainment  to  gracious  and  enlightened  souls.  The 
very  portraiture  of  Jesus  is  seen  in  them.  Meditation 
on  them  adds  greatly  to  the  delights  of  the  gospel 
feast." 

But  an  authority  much  higher  than  either  John  Bun- 
yan  or  his  annotator  has  set  this  entire  matter  at  rest. 
In  one  of  his  plainest  discourses  our  Lord  said  :  "  Search 
the  Scriptures  :  for  in  them  ye  think  ye  have  eternal 
life  :  and  they  are  they  which  testify  of  me." 

Hence  this  passage  in  the  ninth  chapter  of  Hebrews, 
which  the  classes  are  soon  going  to  study  in  detail,  is 
nothing  more  nor  less  than  a  reiteration  with  extensive 
particulars  of  what  Jesus  in  person  had  declared  would 
be  the  grand  reward  for  all  faithful  Scripture  study.  If 
men  would  only  read  the  Bible  as  it  ought  to  be  read, 
they  would  be  sure  to  find  Christ  everywhere  in  it. 
Even  the  most  intricate  and  mysterious  ceremonials  of 


132  SHADOW  AND   SUESTANCE. 

Allegories  and  symbols.  Christ,  the  world's  Saviour. 

that  former  dispensation  which  vanished  when  the  Sav- 
iour came  would  surprise  us  with  their  clearness  of  ref- 
erence to  him  and  his  work. 

This  suggests  to  us  the  way  in  which  to  examine  the 
Old  Testament  as  a  whole.  See  in  its  entire  record — 
history,  prophecy,  rites  of  worship  and  songs  of  praise 
— symbols  and  signs,  emblems,  allegories,  and  figures, 
*Svhich  are  a  shadov/  of  things  to  come  ;  but  the  body 
is  of  Christ." 

The  apostle  has  been  telling  the  Hebrew  Christians 
that  many  of  those  matters  v/hich  they  had  considered 
peculiarly  Jewish,  selfishly  claiming  them  as  national 
and  special  to  themselves,  were  of  Christian  relevance 
and  belonged  to  the  whole  world.  The  tabernacle  was 
cosmopolitan,  Aaron's  rod  and  the  pot  of  manna  were 
of  universal  ownership.  Even  the  high-priesthood  would 
have  to  be  generously  shared  with  those  of  every  age  and 
nation  under  the  canopy  of  heaven.  He  went  in  before 
the  altar  for  the  great  race  of  men  : — ''The  Holy  Ghost 
this  signifying.  That  the  way  into  the  Holiest  of  all  was 
not  yet  made  manifest,  while  as  the  first  tabernacle  was 
yet  standing  :  which  was  a  figure  for  the  time  then  pres- 
ent, in  which  were  offered  both  gifts  and  sacrifices,  that 
could  not  make  him  that  did  the  service  perfect,  as  per- 
taining to  the  conscience  ;  which  stood  jonly  in  meats 
and  drinks,  and  divers  v/ashings,  and  carnal  ordinan- 
ces, imposed  on  them  until  the  time  of  reformation. 
But  Christ  being  come  a  high-priest  of  good  things  to 
come,  by  a  greater  and  more  perfect   tabernacle,  not 


SHADOW  AND  SUBSTANCE.  1 33 

Old  Testament  characters.  Moses  and  Jacob. 

made  with  hands,  that  is  to  say,  not  of  this  building; 
neither  by  the  blood  of  goats  and  calves,  but  by  his  own 
blood,  he  entered  in  once  into  the  holy  place,  having 
obtained  eternal  redemption  for  us." 

I. — Now  let  us  look,  in  the  first  place,  at  the  legiti- 
mate method  of  work  which  this  principle  suggests,  and 
trace  out  a  few  results  to  v/hich  it  will  lead. 

I.  Of  course,  we  shall  expect  to  find  the  person  and 
office  of  our  Lord  typed  now  and  then  in  the  historic 
characters  of  the  Old  Testament.  As,  for  example, 
Moses  ;  for  Simon  Peter  mentions  him,  quoting  his  very 
words :  '^  For  Moses  truly  said  unto  the  fathers,  A 
prophet  shall  the  Lord  your  God  raise  up  unto  you,  of 
your  brethren,  like  unto  me ;  him  shall  ye  hear  in  all 
things,  Vvdiatsoever  he  shall  say  unto  you."  Very  inter- 
esting would  be  the  exercise,  Avith  some  of  the  briglit 
children  in  our  Christian  families,  to  ask  and  answer 
how  many  things  in  tliis  famous  leader's  life  would  re- 
mind us  of  Jesus.  Hov/  v/as  our  Lord  '^  like  unto " 
Moses  ?  Threatened  in  infancy — rejected  by  those  he 
came  to  serve — fasting  forty  days  in  the  wilderness  of 
Sinai — transfigured  on  the  mount — so  the  enumeration 
would  run  on. 

Jacob  also  would  invite  study  ;  for  that  wonderful 
ladder  of  his  which  he  saw  at  Bethel  reappears  in  the 
New  Testament  record  with  a  gospel  meaning  attached 
to  it.  Nathanael  must  have  noticed  the  reference  when 
Christ  spoke  to  him  :  ''And  he  saith  unto  him.  Verily, 
verily,   I  say  unto  yoa    Hereafter  ye   shall  see  hcn,vcn 


134  SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE. 

Joseph's  history.  Christ  our  Passover. 

open,  and  the  angels  of  God  ascending  and  descending 
upon  the  Son  of  man." 

Joseph's  story,  like^vise,  is  full  of  suggestion.  How 
much  like  Jesus'  ''Come  unto  me"  does  this  remem- 
bered verse  sound,  if  we  call  to  mind  the  whole  history 
behind  it :  ''And  Joseph  said  unto  his  brethren,  Come 
near  to  me,  I  pray  you  :  and  they  came  near.  And  he 
said,  I  am  Joseph  your  brother,  whom  ye  sold  into 
Egypt." 

2.  Then  in  the  ritual  and  the  ceremonies  of  that  old 
dispensation  we  should  be  sure  to  find  Christ.  Indeed, 
this  is  the  entire  force  of  the  passage  before  us  now. 
The  candlestick,  the  table  of  shew-bread,  the  censer, 
Aaron's  rod,  and  the  pot  of  manna,  are  all  declared  to 
be  without  significance,  unless  we  remember  the  les- 
sons they  had  to  teach  concerning  the  Saviour.  A 
mere  figure  "for  the  time  then  present"  was  this  whole 
tabernacle  scheme :  the  substance  was  Christ.  The 
scape-goat  was  a  "  portraiture  "  of  Christ.  The  cities 
of  refuge  symbolized  Christ.  The  Ncav  Testament  wri- 
ters make  no  hesitation  in  passing  over  to  Christ's  ac- 
count even  the  sacredcst  festivals  of  Jewish  history. 
The  apostle  Paul  exhorts  the  Corinthians  :  "  Purge  out 
therefore  the  old  leaven,  that  ye  may  be  a  new  lump,  as 
ye  are  unleavened.  For  even  Christ  our  passover  is 
sacrificed  for  us."  Why  not  raise  in  this  case  also  the 
question  with  children,  How  was  our  Lord  Jesus  like 
the  lamb  Vv^hose  blood  was  sprinkled  on  the  door-posts  ? 

3.  There  seems  almost  no  end  to  such  disquisitions ; 


SHADOW  AND    SUBSTANCE.  1 35 

The  brazen  serpent.  The  cure  for  sin. 

but  one  thing  more  may  profitably  be  instanced.  In 
the  annals  of  ordinary  history  often  may  the  prediction 
or  the  picture  of  the  living  Christ  be  found.  No  more 
pertinent  illustration  of  this  could  be  given  than  that 
which  our  Lord  himself  employed  with  Nicodemus  on 
the  occasion  of  that  ruler's  visit  to  him  in  the  night : 
"And  as  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness, 
even  so  must  the  Son  of  man  be  lifted  up  ;  that  whoso- 
ever believeth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eter- 
nal life."  The  whole  gospel  of  grace  is  in  such  a  story 
as  this.  Indeed,  so  vivid  is  the  figure  that  one  helps  to 
make  the  New  Testament  plain,  as  he  rehearses  the  Old 
Testament  narrative  of  that  part  of  the  Exodus.  We  see 
the  hopelessness  of  human  ruin  in  the  writhing  pain  of 
the  men  bitten  by  the  fiery  serpents  ;  we  note  the  sover- 
eignty of  the  divine  interposition,  as  we  perceive  Moses 
placing  the  brazen  image  upon  the  erected  pole  in  the 
camp  ;  we  are  ready  to  sing  "  There  is  life  for  a  look  at 
the  crucified  One,"  when  we  gaze  at  the  multitudes 
coming  up  for  a  relief  ;  and  we  rejoice  that  a  cure  for 
sin  has  been  made  permanent  and  complete,  as  we  read 
of  those  people  healed  on  the  instant  in  answer  to  their 
faith. 

Thus  everywhere  in  the  Scriptures  we  find  a  far-reach- 
ing prediction  of  redemption  and  of  a  redeemer  for 
men.  The  very  texture  of  the  record  appears  at  times 
designedly  transparent,  as  if  it  had  been  intended  to 
adorn  what  it  was  not  yet  quite  ready  to  reveal.  One 
reads  portions  of  that  ancient  book,  which  was  all  the 


136  SHADOW   AND   SUBSTANCE. 

An  oriental  maiden.  Exegesis  and  eisegesis. 

*'  Bible  "  men  had  when  the  epistle  to  the  Hebrews  was 
first  Avritten,  as  the  enthusiastic  tourist  looks  at  the  veil 
of  an  oriental  maiden  he  meets — a  mere  gauze  across 
the  beautiful  countenance,  heightening  a  loveliness 
w^hich  it  hardly  pretends  to  conceal.  His  earliest  thought 
may  be,  How  exquisite  is  the  fabric  !  But  his  exclama- 
tion comes  instantly  afterward,  Oh,  how  sweet  is  the 
face  ! 

n. — From  this  it  is  becoming  that  we  turn  for  a  mo- 
ment to  consider,  in  the  second  place,  one  altogether 
illegitimate  application  of  the  principle  we  have  been 
seeking  to  illustrate. 

It  is  not  true  that  every  verse  of  inspired  writing  has 
a  hidden  gospel  meaning  lying  under  its  plain  state- 
ment, as  if  it  floated  "  swan  and  shadow"  on  the  stream 
of  revelation.  It  is  useless  and  harmful  to  pervert  exe- 
gesis into  eisegestSy  and  put  Christ  in  where  he  is  not.  It 
is  not  too  much  to  say  that  there  are  whole  paragraphs 
and  chapters  Avhich  do  not  touch  on  the  gospel  plan  or 
experience. 

After  familiar  observation  during  some  years,  I  feel 
inclined  to  think  that  in  searching  the  Scriptures  more 
failures  are  made  in  reference  to  the  true  object  and 
methods  of  search  than  in  anything  else.  What  are  our 
modern  Bereans  looking  for  in  the  Bible  ?  And  are 
they  content  with  what  they  really  find  ? 

It  is  because  comm.entators  and  even  private  Chris- 
tians have  followed  an  undefined  or  a  shifting  purpose, 
or,  perhaps,  no  purpose  at  all,  that  they  have  made  such 


SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE.  ~  1 37 

House-light  and  light-house.  Abraham  married  Keturah. 

Strange  endeavors  after  originality,  and  have  accom- 
plished so  little  at  last.  Dr.  Hamilton's  bright  antithe- 
sis is  quite  in  point :  **  That  vessel  is  always  liable  to  go 
awreck  whose  headstrong  pilot  mistakes  a  house-light 
for  a  light-house."  The  one  worthy  end  at  which  a  sin- 
cere Bible  student  should  aim  is  this  :  merely  to  as- 
certain what  the  word  really  says  and  simply  means. 
**  He  that  hath  an  ear,  let  him  hear  what  the  Spirit  saith 
unto  the  churches." 

The  motto  of  the  mystics  was  :  ''  The  Scriptures  mean 
all  that  they  can  be  made  to  mean."  The  rabbins  of  old 
said  there  was  not  a  letter,  nor  even  an  apex  of  a  letter, 
which  did  not  contain  whole  mountains  of  meaning. 
And  so  they  fashioned  anagrams,  and  counted  the  tran- 
scribed characters,  and  estimated  the  lines,  and  read  the 
sentences  backward.  Putting  everything  in,  they  of 
course  drew  everything  out,  finding  marvels  and  mys- 
teries without  limit,  but  quietly  often  missing  the  truth, 
or  belittling  it  w^ith  nonsense. 

One  of  the  ancient  expositors  read  in  the  sacred  his- 
tory how  Abraham  in  his  later  years  married  Keturah. 
Knowing  that  this  woman's  name,  Keturah^  meant ''  sweet 
odors,"  and  remembering  that  sweet  odors  were  used  as 
a  symbol  of  spiritual  graces,  he  drew  from  this  intricate 
combination  of  fragments  of  learning  a  most  felicitously 
original  thought ;  namely,  that  before  he  died  the  Father 
of  the  Faithful  became  supereminently  sanctified.  Now 
the  pious  patriarch  did  what  doubtless  was  perfectly 
proper  ;  but  taking  a  new  wife   in   his  old   age  is   in 


138  SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE. 

The  world's  "  Eureka  !  "  New  Testament  privileges. 

many  respects  quite  a  different  thing  from  growing  in 

grace. 

III. — So  much,  then,  for  a  discussion  of  the  general 
principle  involved  in  these  verses.  It  remains  for  us 
now  to  state  just  a  few  of  the  lessons  of  excellent  bear- 
ing which  they  suggest. 

1.  Let  us  try  to  appreciate  the  exultation  of  feeling 
w^ith  which  believers  under  the  Old  Testament  received 
the  fresh  disclosures  of  the  New.  Andrew  opened  an 
unusually  wide  store  of  exciting  information  w^hen  he 
made  his  brother  Simon  Peter  understand  that  in  all 
serious  likelihood  Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  Israel's  actual 
Messiah.  Meaning  of  untold  and  indescribable  impor- 
tance was  condensed  into  the  explosive  language  he 
used  when  he  announced  to  him,  *'We  have  found  the 
Christ!"  This  was  the  w^orld's  glad  ^^ Eureka''  after 
forty  centuries  of  groping  among  the  shadows  and  sym- 
bols of  a  dying  dispensation.  '^  But  if  the  ministration 
of  death,  written  and  engraven  in  stones,  V\ras  glorious, 
so  that  the  children  of  Israel  could  not  steadfastly  be- 
hold the  face  of  Moses  for  the  glory  of  his  countenance  ; 
which  glory  was  to  be  done  away  :  how  shall  not  the 
ministration  of  the  spirit  be  rather  glorious  ?  For  if 
the  ministration  of  condemnation  be  glory,  much  more 
doth  the  ministration  of  righteousness  exceed  in  glory." 

2.  So  let  us  ourselves  come  to  a  proper  estimate  of 
our  own  increased  privileges  under  the  New  Testament. 
When  we  reach  the  Gospels,  after  working^  our  way 
wearily  through  the  first  division  of  the  Bible,  we  seem 


SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE.  1 39 

*'  We  have  found  the  Christ !  "  The  Old  Testament 

to  have  struggled  forth  from  a  forest  path  of  emblems 
and  signs,  where  only  lances  of  fitful  illumination  could 
glance  into  the  gloom  occasionally,  out  upon  the  cleared 
hillside  of  revelation,  where  the  full  sunshine  of  grace 
lies  over  every  prospect.  There  was  one  little  formula 
of  great  meaning,  drawn  from  Andrew's  exclamation, 
perhaps,  which  served  the  strict  purpose  of  a  primitive 
creed  to  all  those  new  disciples,  and  which  might  well 
become  familiar  upon  our  tongues.  Philip  took  it  up 
easily  when  he  proclaimed  to  Nathanael :  **We  have 
found  him  of  whom  Moses  in  the  law,  and  the  prophets, 
did  write,  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  the  son  of  Joseph."  The 
passionate  longing  of  many  a  generation  was  concen- 
trated into  that  one  utterance.  We  have  entered  into 
a  fulness  they  never  knew,  now  in  these  latter  days, 
**  Blessed  are  the  eyes  which  see  the  things  that  ye  see. 
For  I  tell  you,  that  many  prophets  and  kings  have  de- 
sired to  see  those  things  which  ye  see,  and  have  not  seen 
them  ;  and  to  hear  those  things  which  ye  hear,  and  have 
not  heard  them." 

3.  Still,  let  us  learn  to  respect  the  Old  Testament  for 
the  sake  of  the  gospel  there  certainly  was  in  it.  It  has 
grown  fashionable  to  speak  slightingly  of  that  former 
dispensation.  But  many  souls  of  men  were  saved  under 
it.  Just  now  we  discover  from  an  unmistakable  chapter 
here  before  us  that  all  of  that  early  record  was  full  of 
Christ.  Abraham  saw  the  day  of  Christ  afar  off,  and 
was  glad.  During  four  thousand  years,  never  had  any 
devout  Hebrew  mother  fastened  her  first   eager  look 


I40  SHADOW  AND    SUBSTANCE. 

The  seed  of  the  woman.  Moore's  couplet. 

upon  her  new-born  babe  without  solemnly  wondering 
whether  it  might  not  be  her  child  which  was  to  be  *'  the 
seed  of  the  woman  "  to  fulfil  the  Paradise  promise  and 
"bruise  the  serpent's  head."  Those  people  must  have 
known  in  many  particulars  what  they  were  praying  for. 
The  visions  of  the  impetuous  seers,  the  inspired  sym- 
bols of  the  ceremonial  law,  the  fervid  predictions  of  the 
singing  psalmists,  all  pointed  toward  one  luminous  star 
which  was  hanging  out  in  the  future  over  the  manger 
where  Immanuel  should  be  born. 

4.  Think,  then,  how  rich  with  wealth  of  spiritual 
meaning  are  both  of  these  two  Testaments  that  lie  in 
our  hands  so  freely  to-day.  To  the  glory  of  the  poetry 
add  the  greater  glory  of  the  prediction  it  contains.  To 
the  splendor  of  the  ritual,  add  the  greater  splendor  of 
the  Christ  it  symbolized.  So  we  learn  that  there  are 
verses  of  the  Bible  with  a  double  degree  of  meaning — • 
like  the  rainbow  which  is  beautiful  beyond  everything 
else  for  just  what  is  seen  of  it,  and  then  more  beautiful 
still  for  the  sake  of  the  grand  covenant  it  seals.  Oh, 
what  reaches  and  spans  of  measureless  comfort  there 
are  in  such  promises  ;  yet  God,  who  gave  them,  sits  un- 
exhausted in  grace  beyond !  How  wxU  to  search  the 
Scriptures ! 

**  So  the  sky  we  look  up  to,   though  glorious  and  fair. 
Is  looked  up  to  the  more  because  heaven  lies  there  !  "J 

5.  Then  let  us  remember  what  grandeur  and  majesty 
there  is  in  the  services  of  God's  house.     If  only  the 


SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE.  141 

God's  house.  Mysteries  explained. 

spirit  be  carefully  preserved,  forms  may  well  be  gor- 
geous and  significant.  This  whole  chapter  is  crowded 
with  the  meaning  that  lay  hid  in  the  tabernacle.  God's 
dwelling  should  be  the  finest  dwelling  in  the  town. 
Music  should  make  it  welcome  with  the  highest  conse- 
cration of  art.  Each  Christian  should  enter  a  New  Tes- 
tament church  singing  in  his  heart :  "  How  amiable  are 
thy  tabernacles,  O  Lord  of  hosts  !  My  soul  longeth, 
yea,  even  fainteth  for  the  courts  of  the  Lord :  my 
heart  and  my  flesh  crieth  out  for  the  living  God."  And 
he  should  leave  it  promising  :  ''  If  I  forget  thee,  O  Je- 
rusalem, let  my  right  hand  forget  her  cunning.  If  I  do 
not  remember  thee,  let  my  tongue  cleave  to  the  roof  of 
my  mouth ;  if  I  prefer  not  Jerusalem  above  my  chief 
joy." 

6.  Finally,  let  us  remember  the  sanctuary  overhead. 
"  Fia  criicis^  via  lucis  !  "  So  the  old  monks  used  to  chant 
in  mediaeval  songs.  Through  all  the  shadows,  out  at 
last  into  the  pure  light,  does  the  way  lead  which  starts 
in  lonely  and  lowly  steps  beside  Jesus'  cross.  The  as- 
surance comes  with  a  vast  welcome  to  every  tried  heart 
that  is  sometimes  heavy  here  with  v/orry  and  care.  Life 
appears  a  wilderness  of  little-understood  visions  and 
shows.  Will  these  mysteries,  like  the  similitudes  of  the 
tabernacle,  ever  have  an  explanation  ?  Will  the  unreal- 
ities which  lie  over  us,  even  now  in  New  Testament 
times,  ever  fully  disappear  ?  Will  the  confusions  ever 
clear  that  make  this  existence  of  ours  so  perplexing  ? 
Hear  the  answer :    *'  But  Christ  being  come  an  high- 


142  SHADOW  AND   SUBSTANCE. 

Eternal  redemption.  -.  --  Arnold's  remark. 

priest  of  good  things  to  come,  by  a  great  and  more  per- 
fect tabernacle,  not  made  with  hands,  that  is  to  say,  not 
of  this  building :  neither  by  the  blood  of  goats  and 
calves,  but  by  his  own  blood,  he  entered  in  once  into 
the  holy  place,  having  obtained  eternal  redemption  for 
us." 

With  the  endless  ages  of  that  new  life  open  before  us 
for  our  study  and  God's  explanation,  we  ought  to  be 
willing  to  remain  unf retted  now.  Arnold  says  well : 
"  Before  a  confessed  and  unconquerable  difficulty,  the 
mind,  if  in  a  healthy  state,  reposes  as  quietly  as  when 
in  the  possession  of  a  discovered  truth  ;  as  quietly  and 
contentedly  as  we  are  accustomed  to  bear  that  law  of 
our  nature  which  denies  us  the  power  of  seeing  through 
all  space,  or  of  being  exempt  from  sickness  or  decay." 
We  can  afford  to  wait  till  all  these  earthly  shadows  find 
their  substance  :  *'  For  now  we  see  through  a  glass, 
darkly ;  but  then  face  to  face  :  now  I  know  in  part  ;  but 
then  shall  I  know  even  as  also  I  am  known." 


XIII. 
SAVING  FAITH. 

Now   FAITH    IS    THE   SUBSTANCE    OF    THINGS    HOPED    FOR,   THE    EVI- 
DENCE OF  THINGS  NOT  SEEN. — Hebrews  ii :  i. 

There  were  those  who  one  time  asked  the  Saviour, 
*'What  shall  we  do  that  we  might  work  the  works  of 
God  ?"  To  this  he  replied,  "•  This  is  the  work  of  God, 
that  ye  believe  on  him  whom  he  hath  sent." 

The  issue,  then,  between  God  and  men  is  narrowed 
down  to  this — '' only  believe."  **  He  that  believeth  on 
the  Son  of  God  is  not  condemned ;  but  he  that  believ- 
eth not  is  condemned  already,  because  he  hath  not  be- 
lieved in  the  name  of  the  only-begotten  Son  of  God." 
Hence,  the  true  and  only  answer  to  an  inquiring  sinner 
is,  "  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  thou  shalt 
be  saved." 

No  man,  however,  can  be  an  inquirer  except  under 
the  influence  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  No  man  can  come 
to  Christ  *' except  the  Father  draw  him."  If  he  comes 
asking,  that  proves  that  he  comes  drawn.  Hence,  the 
folly  of  those  who  profess  to  be  waiting  for  the  Spirit 
in  order  to  believe.  They  have  the  Spirit ;  they  are  re- 
sisting him,  instead  of  waiting  for  him,  this  very  moment. 
And  hence,  the  correction,  also,  of  all  false  views  of 
those  who  deem  it  perilous  to  urge  on  every  soul  the 


144  SAVING  FAITH. 


The  Holy  Spirit.  Historic  faith. 

duty  of  immediate  and  believing  surrender  to  Christ : 
that  is  the  Spirit's  work,  it  is  admitted ;  but  this  is  the 
man's  duty.  He  is  wider  the  power  of  the  Spirit  from  the 
moment  he  asks  the  way.  And  we  are  bound  to  bid  him 
believe  and  be  saved.  If  he  cannot  understand  it,  we 
must  explain  it.  This  is  what  I  now  am  attempting  to 
do. 

I.  Let  us  inquire,  first,  the  meaning  of  the  term. 
There  are  no  less  than  five  significations  of  it  found  in 
the  Bible. 

1.  Sometimes  the  word  refers  merely  to  a  creed,  with 
no  notion  in  it  of  spiritual  experience  at  all.  Thus  Paul 
tells  his  friend  Timothy  :  *'  Now  the  Spirit  speaketh  ex- 
pressly, that  in  the  latter  times  some  shall  depart  from 
the  faith,  giving  heed  to  seducing  spirits,  and  doctrines 
of  devils."  And  so  v/rites  Jude  :  *'Ye  should  earnestly 
contend  for  the  faith  which  was  once  delivered  unto 
the  saints."  Here  the  meaning  is  manifest  ;  a  simple 
grouping  of  revealed  doctrines  in  a  system. 

2.  When  the  Bible  speaks  of  faith,  it  sometimes  means 
mere  belief  in  facts.  '^  Through  faith  we  understand 
that  the  worlds  were  framed  by  the  word  of  God,  so 
that  things  which  are  seen  were  not  made  of  things 
which  do  appear."  This  kind  of  faith  is  necessary,  in  a 
certain  sense,  to  salvation  :  **for  he  that  cometh  to  God 
must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that  he  is  a  rewarder  of  them 
that  diligently  seek  him."  The  facts  of  the  Saviour's 
life  are  to  be  received  in  that  way.  But  this  is  not  sav- 
ing faith  at  all.     For  we  read  that  even  the  devils  **be- 


SAVING   FAITH.  1 45 


Logical  faith.  Faith  of  miracles. 

lieve  and  tremble."  They  know  nil  about  the  history 
of  the  Prince  of  Salvation,  but  arc  not  benefited  by 
their  knowledge. 

3.  Again  ;  faith  sometimes  means  that  conviction  of 
the  understanding  wliich  results  from  proofs  laid  before 
it,  or  arguments  adduced.  This  is  that  which  the  woman 
wrought  among  her  neighbors  w^hen  she  came  back  from 
the  conversation  with  Jesus,  at  Jacob's  well :  "And  many 
of  the  Samaritans  of  that  city  believed  on  him  for  the 
saying  of  the  v/oman,  vdiich  testified,  He  told  me  all 
tliat  ever  I  did."  It  received  great  quickening  from  the 
interviews  with  the  Messiah  they  had  for  themselves  ; 
for  then  they  ''said  unto  the  woman,  Now  we  believe, 
not  because  of  thy  saying  ;  for  we  have  heard  him  our- 
selves, and  know  that  this  is  indeed  the  Christ,  the  Sav- 
iour of  the  world."  This  also  is  the  faith  which  Thomas 
had,  when,  being  asked  to  put  his  hand  in  the  side  of 
his  Lord,  and  his  finger  in  the  prints  of  the  nails,  he  was 
constrained  by  the  evidence  to  admit  the  reality  of  the 
resurrection.  ''  Because  thou  hast  seen,"  said  Jesus  to 
him,  "  thou  hast  believed."  But  this  is  not  saving  faith  ; 
for  our  Lord  imm.ediately  added,  ''  Blessed  are  they  that 
have  not  seen,  and  yet  have  believed." 

4.  And  sometimes  the  Bible  means  the  faith  of  mira- 
cles. This  was  a  peculiar  gift,  bestowed  by  Christ  upon 
his  immediate  follov/ers,  in  order  that  they  might  attest 
their  divine  mission  by  using  divine  power.  This  is 
what  he  intended  when  he  said,  "If  ye  have  faith,  if  ye 
shall   say  unto  this  mountain.   Be  thou   removed,   and 

7 


146  SAVING  FAITH. 


A  right  apprehension.  A  drowning  man, 

be  thou  cast  into  the  sea,  it  shall  be  done."  Now,  what- 
ever was  the  nature  of  this  peculiar  endowment,  it  is 
evident  enough  that  there  was  no  grace  in  it  to  save  the 
soul ;  for  the  Saviour  himself  declared,  **  Many  will 
say  to  me  in  that  day.  Lord,  Lord,  have  we  not  prophe- 
sied in  thy  name,  and  in  thy  name  have  cast  out  devils, 
and  in  thy  name  have  done  many  wonderful  works  ? 
And  then  will  I  profess  unto  them,  I  never  knew  you." 

5.  Then,  lastly,  the  Bible  means  saving  faith  ;  the 
true  belief  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  through  v/liich  we 
are  justified,  and  by  which  we  live. 

II.  In  the  second  place,  let  us  inquire  concerning  the 
nature  of  this  exercise.  The  old  writers  used  to  say 
that  faith  v/as  composed  of  three  elements  :  a  right  Ap- 
prehension, a  cordial  Assent,  and  an  unwavering  Trust. 
Let  me  seek  to  exhibit  these  in  turn  in  a  very  familiar 
way. 

I.  To  app7'ehend  is  really  a  physical  act,  and  means  to 
seize  hold  of.  When  applied  to  mental  operation,  it  sig- 
nifies to  conceive  clearly  any  given  object,  and  hold  it 
before  the  mind  for  examination  and  use.  It  does  not 
always  include  a  full  comprehension ;  and  this  is  so  es- 
pecially true  in  reference  to  matters  connected  Vv^ith  the 
plan  of  salvation,  that  I  shall  seek  to  have  it  very  expli- 
citly understood  here  in  the  outset.  A  drowning  man 
may  catch  a  rope  that  hangs  near  him,  and  be  rescued 
by  it,  without  knowing  who  threw  it  to  him,  or  who  will 
draw  it  in,  or  what  vessel  it  trails  from.  He  apprehends 
it,  but  he  does  not  comprehend  it.     He  sees  it,  but  he 


SAVING   FAITH.  M/ 


Apprehend  and  comprehend.  The  brazen  serpent. 

does  not  see  all  with  which  it  is  connected.  The  fleeing 
Hebrew  might  not  know  who  erected  the  guide-posts  on 
the  way  to  the  cities  of  refuge,  or  how  they  were  instru- 
mental in  saving  him  from  the  avenger  of  blood  when 
he  was  Avithin  the  walls.  But  he  would  need  to  see  the 
great  letters  of  the  word  ''  Refuge  "  that  was  printed  on 
them,  and  note  the  direction  in  which  the  index  finger 
pointed. 

Now,  a  careless  confounding  of  these  terms  has  caused 
a  great  many  mistakes  on  the  part  of  those  who  declare 
they  ''will  not  believe  what  they  cannot  understand." 
They  arc  not  required  to  believe  what  they  cannot  appre- 
hend;  but  they  do  believe,  over  and  over  again,  even  in 
the  common  matters  of  life,  what  they  cannot  comprehends 
The  growing  of  the  grass,  the  circulation  of  the  blood, 
are  as  complete  mysteries  to  human  understanding  as 
the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  or  the  Incarnation.  I  must 
not  turn  away  from  coming  to  the  Saviour,  because  I 
cannot  see  how  God  could  be  manifest  in  the  flesh. 
Enough  is  it  for  me,  that  the  Scriptures  reveal  the  mys- 
terious fact  that  he  has  been. 

And  here  you  see,  therefore,  how  much  any  sinner 
can  claim  before  he  yields,  and  how  little.  He  may  ask 
just  as  much  information  as  the  Israelite  bitten  by  the 
fiery  serpent  in  the  wilderness  might  ask  :  *'  Where  is 
that  image  of  brass  ?  what  must  I  do  when  I  approach 
it?"  When  Moses  had  replied,  ''It  is  close  by  you  in 
the  midst  of  the  camp  ;  you  are  only  to  look  and  to 
live  ; "  then  his  solemn  duty  began,  and  he  was  respon- 


;48  SAVING  FAITH. 


Means  of  grace.  Humble  assent. 

sible  for  his  own  delay.  With  the  philosophy  of  the 
cure  he  had  nothing  to  do. 

The  two  essential  things  for  every  man  to  apprehend, 
are  his  own  need,  and  Jesus  Christ's  fitness  to  supply  it. 
There  is  the  inward  look,  and  then  there  is  the  outward 
look.  I  cannot  help  myself,  and  the  Saviour  can  help 
me — are  the  two  thoughts  that  must  lie  buried  deep  in 
his  soul.  It  matters  little  how  these  things  are  learned. 
*'  There  are  diversities  of  operations,  but  the  same  Spirit." 
The  Holy  Ghost  may  teach  one  person  through  the  read- 
ing of  the  word  ;  another  person  through  some  stroke 
of  providence,  or  by  the  ministry  of  reconciliation.  In 
one  v/ay  or  another  the  soul  must  come  to  see  its  ruin 
and  its  Redeemer  ;  to  feel  its  helplessness  and  know  its 
Helper.  It  may  not  see  how  it  came  to  be  so  desper- 
ately ruined,  nor  how  Jesus  can  be  of  such  paramount 
relief  to  it.  It  may  know^  no  more  than  blind  Bartimeus 
did  ;  that  he  could  not  see,  and  that  the  Nazarene  Healer 
was  passing  by.  Those  two  things,  however,  every  sin- 
ner needs  to  perceive. 

2.  Then  comes  the  second  element  of  faith,  already 
mentioned — namely,  assent.  This  is  a  step  in  advance 
of  the  other.  A  simple  illustration  will  make  plain 
what  is  mxcant  by  it.  An  invalid  is  sometimes  very  un- 
willing to  admit  his  danger,  even  when  he  has  nothing 
to  oppose  to  the  reasoning  of  one  who  proves  it.  He 
feels  his  weakness,  but  he  resorts  to  a  thousand  subter- 
fuges to  avoid  yielding  to  the  physician.  His  judgment 
is  convinced,  but  his  will  is  unbroken.     He  apprehends 


SAVING  FAITH.  1 49 


Naaman's  pride.  "  Some  great  thing." 

his  danger,  and  knows  the  remedy  ;  but  he  refuses  to 
be  helped.  What  he  needs  now  is  assent  ;  and  this  re- 
quires humility  and  the  renunciation  of  self-will. 

Naaman  might  not  know,  and  really  had  no  need  to 
know — no  right  to  claim  to  know — how  the  river  Jor- 
dan could  cure  leprosy,  or  what  virtue  there  would  be 
in  seven  bathings,  or  what  authority  Elislia  had  to  send 
him  there.  But  he  needed  to  understand  clearly  the 
prophet's  directions,  so  as  not  to  mistake  the  name  of 
the  stream,  or  err  as  to  what  he  was  to  do  w^hen  he 
reached  it,  or  forget  the  number  of  times  he  was  to 
wash  to  be  clean.  And  this  he  had  a  fair  right  to  know 
before  the  crime  of  disobedience  was  urged  upon  him. 
**  But  Naaman  was  wroth,  and  went  away,  and  said,  Be- 
hold, I  thought,  He  will  surely  come  out  to  me,  and 
stand,  and  call  on  the  name  of  the  Lord  his  God,  and 
strike  his  hand  over  the  place,  and  recover  the  leper." 

Evidently,  this  Syrian  captain's  pride  was  wounded. 
He  imagined  that  the  prophet  was  going  to  show  him 
the  consideration  due  to  his  importance.  He  did  not 
like  to  be  thrown  on  himself  in  this  way.  He  would 
not  own  up  his  utter  helplessness,  and  the  wretchedness 
of  his  incurable  disease.  Nor  did  he  like  the  method 
of  relief.  He  complained  of  the  river  ;  Jordan  water  is 
muddy  and  yellow.  *'Are  not  Abana  and  Pharpar,  riv- 
ers of  Damascus,  better  than  all  the  waters  of  Israel  ? 
may  I  not  wash  in  them,  and  be  clean  ?  So  he  turned 
and  went  away  in  a  rage."  In  the  end,  you  remember, 
it  was  his  retinue  that  helped  him  make  an  absolute 


ISO  SAVING  FAITH. 


The  Syrophosnician  woman.  Implicit  trust. 

surrender.  *'And  his  servant  came  near,  and  spake 
unto  him,  and  said.  My  father,  if  the  prophet  had  bid 
thee  do  some  great  thing,  wouldest  thou  not  have  done 
it  ?  how  much  rather  then,  when  he  saith  to  thee,  Wash, 
and  be  clean  ? " 

Faith  inchides  this.  It  calls  for  a  cheerful  submis- 
sion to  God's  requirements,  the  moment  we  apprehend 
them,  no  matter  how  humiliating  the  assertion  of  our 
ill-desert  may  be.  When  the  Syrophcenician  woman 
came  pleading  to  our  Saviour,  he  gave  her  faith  a  most 
severe  testing  before  he  granted  her  petition.  **It  is 
not  meet,"  he  said,  ''to  take  the  children's  bread  and 
cast  it  to  the  dogs."  Now,  did  she  grow  angry  at  this 
rebuff?  Did  she  refuse  to  admit  its  justice?  Did  she 
go  away  grieved,  because  he  seemed  to  be  harsh  to  her  ? 
No,  indeed;  she  admitted  it  all.  ''Truth,  Lord,"  said 
she,  "yet  the  dogs  eat  of  the  crumbs  that  fall  from  their 
master's  table."  Then  he  raised  her  up,  saying,  "O 
woman,  great  is  thy  faith  ;  be  it  unto  thee  as  thou  wilt." 
She  not  only  saw  the  truth,  but  assented  to  it  likewise, 
though  the  admission  was  humbling  in  the  extreme. 
And  so  must  the  inquiring  sinner  give  assent  to  all  the 
teachings  of  the  gospel,  self-abasing  as  they  are  ;  admit 
everything  ;  throw  up  all  excuses  ;  leave  all  refuges  of 
lies  ;  renounce  self  altogether  ;  "only  believe." 

3.  The  third  element  of  saving  faith  is  trust.  By  this 
I  mean  reliance  on  the  truth  of  what  God  said  he  would 
do  ;  a  quiet  resting  on  his  promises  to  accomplish  all  we 
need  for  salvation.     You  remember  in  the  case  of  the 


SAVING  FAITH.  1 51 


The  centurion.  The  Passover. 

centurion,  our  Lord  declared  he  *Miad  not  found  so 
great  faith,  no,  not  in  Israel."  Now,  what  was  it  that 
made  his  faith  in  particular  so  great,  so  peculiar  in  it- 
self, and  so  superior  in  the  estimation  of  the  Saviour  ? 
Simply  the  presence  in  it  of  superabounding  trust.  He 
had  asked  for  a  gift  of  healing  to  be  bestowed  upon  his 
servant  lying  at  home  sick.  To  his  request  Jesus  re- 
plied, "I  will  come  and  heal  him."  One  would  think 
that  now  the  centurion  would  doubt  a  little.  Might  not 
the  Saviour  forget  his  promise  in  the  multiplicity  of  his 
cares  ?  Might  he  not  delay  coming  till  too  late  ?  Even 
this  suspicion  made  his  trust  a  matter  of  somewhat  diffi- 
cult exercise  ;  and  yet  that  man  v/as  v/illing  to  go  fur- 
ther. He  was  content  to  rest  on  a  mere  declaration, 
without  a  promise.  ''Speak  the  word  only,"  said  he, 
*'and  my  servant  shall  be  healed."  He  did  not  care  to 
have  the  Saviour's  presence,  if  he  would  only  say  the 
man  should  be  whole.  Then  he  could  depart  to  his 
house  restful  and  satisfied. 

Let  us  take  one  more  illustration  ;  that  which  is  of- 
fered in  the  ancient  passover  scene.  Moses  told  the  Is- 
raelites to  sprinkle  a  lamb's  blood  on  the  door-posts, 
and  the  destroying  angel  would  not  enter  their  dwell- 
ings. Picture  a  father,  whose  first-born  was  dear  to 
him  as  the  apple  of  his  eye.  As  that  solemn  midnight 
drew  near,  it  is  possible  his  heart  would  grieve  with  anx- 
iety. But  he  would  say  aloud  :  "I  have  done  all  I  was 
told  to  do  ;  I  know  the  blood-drops  are  on  my  door ;  I 
rest  in  Moses'  promise,  for  I  am  sure  he  spoke  for  God ; 


153  SAVING  FAITH. 


"  Only  believe."  General  experience. 

here,  then,  I  take  my  stand,  and  am  going  to  wait  the 
issue  ;  there  is  no  more  to  do  ! " 

This  is  trust ;  acquiescence  without  question,  restful- 
ness  without  wavering  ;  and  it  is  the  most  essential  part 
of  faith,  and  yet  the  most  difhcult  to  exercise.  Almost 
all  in  our  Christian  communities  have  two  of  the  ele- 
ments of  faith  already  mentioned.  They  know  the  Sav- 
iour's history.  They  understand  his  gospel  plan.  They 
have  been  told  his  ability  and  his  willingness  to  save 
them.  A  first  step  then,  apprehension,  has  been  taken. 
And  so  has  a  second,  assent,  been  taken  by  very  many. 
They  do  not  doubt  one  word  that  God  has  spoken. 
They  feel  their  ruin.  They  are  under  a  constant  con- 
viction of  sin.  They  admit  everything.  Now,  what  yet 
do  they  need  ?  Nothing  except  this  third  step,  trust; 
"only  believe."  Rely  on  the  Saviour.  Rest  in  him. 
Hold  to  his  truth  in  all  he  says. 

III.  The  use  to  be  made  of  this  analysis,  comes  next 
to  view.  We  are  ready  to  speak  to  any  inquiring  sinner 
within  our  reach  directly,  and  this  is  what  the  Scriptures 
teach  us  to  say. 

Your  experience  hitherto  has  been  something  like 
this.  You  have  seen  your  need  ;  you  have  admitted  it ; 
you  have  gone  in  prayer  to  Jesus  confessing  it.  Told 
to  pray,  you  did  pray.  Moved  by  some  faithful  sermon, 
or  tract,  or  conversation,  you  have  gone  home  to  the 
privacy  of  your  own  chamber,  making  sober  resolution 
to  become  a  Christian  at  once.  You  knew  you  had 
been  a  sinner,  condemned  to  eternal  death.     You  as- 


SAVING  FAITH.  1 53 


The  failure.  Bargaining  with  God. 

sented  to  all  that  the  word  of  God  charged  on  you. 
And  you  longed  to  be  helped.  Told  to  confess,  you  did 
confess.  Told  you  must  be  in  earnest,  you  honestly 
think  you  laid  your  whole  heart  bare  before  God.  You 
acknowledged  everything,  and  only  plead  for  pardon. 
You  said  in  your  prayer,  **0  Lord,  I  am  vile,  I  come  to 
thee  ;  I  plead  thy  promise  that  thou  wilt  not  cast  me 
out ;  I  give  myself  away  in  an  everlasting  surrender ;  I 
leave  my  soul  at  the  very  foot  of  the  cross  !  "  And  then 
you  rose  from  your  knees,  murmuring,  **  Oh,  I  am  no 
better  ;  I  feel  just  the  same  as  before  !  " 

You  saw  that  you  had  made  a  failure.  Now,  where 
was  the  lack  ?  Simply  in  the  particular  of  trust.  You 
would  not  take  Jesus  at  his  word.  He  had  said,  *'  Him 
that  Cometh  unto  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out."  So 
you  plead  with  him.  You  came  unto  him,  but  you  in- 
sist that  he  did  cast  you  out  after  all. 

You  said — here  I  am  ;  and  then  you  drew  back.  You 
said — I  give  myself  to  thee  ;  and  then  you  took  yourself 
away  again.  You  trifled  with  God.  You  should  have 
left  yourself  there,  and  trusted  your  soul  with  him,  as 
you  said  you  would.  Let  me  suggest  to  you  where  your 
disappointment  was  centred.  I  think  I  can  tell  you 
what  you  half-expected,  half-bargained,  on  the  spot. 

If  some  clear  voice  had  only  spoken  to  you  as  you 
kneeled,  saying,  ''  Thy  sins  be  forgiven  thee  ;  go  in 
peace,"  how  your  heart  would  have  leaped  for  joy.  If 
you  could  only  have  seen  Paul's  "great  light,"  that 
would  have  confirmed  you.  Or  if  even  some  aged  min- 
7* 


154  SAVING  FAITH. 


A  sign  wanted.  Faith,  not  sight. 

ister  had  bent  over  and  whispered  in  your  ear,  "You 
are  received,  I  am  sure,"  then  you  would  perhaps  have 
been  satisfied,  and  begun  tremblingly  to  hope.  But  be- 
cause you  had  nothing  of  this,  not  even  a  sign  without, 
or  a  strange  feeling  within,  that  you  could  make  to  an- 
swer for  a  sign,  you  were  discouraged.  Now,  I  have 
three  remarks  to  make  about  this  action  of  yours,  and 
its  result. 

In  the  first  place,  let  me  say,  I  would  not  have  been 
the  minister  to  tell  you  of  your  acceptance,  for  all  the 
world.  For  then  you  would  have  believed  in  me,  not  in 
the  Saviour.  No  man  has  any  right  to  say  such  a  thing 
to  you.  I  have  seen  those  who  in  revival  times  will 
question  and  direct  for  a  while,  and  then  say  to  young 
persons,  "All  right,  you  are  converted  !  "  and  my  blood 
has  run  cold.     They  know  nothing  about  it. 

In  the  second  place,  let  me  tell  you  that  you  never 
w^ill  have  any  such  sign,  without  or  within,  to  be  your 
confirmation.  If  God  ever  gives  anything  of  tlie  sort, 
it  will  only  be  afterward,  for  your  comfort.  "  We  walk 
by  faith,  not  by  sight ; "  and  this  would  be  sight,  not 
faith.  God  does  not  deal  with  men  so.  He  claims  that 
they  shall  trust  him  without  speaking.  If  you  stand  off, 
saying  in  your  heart,  I  will  believe  the  moment  I  feel 
accepted,  you  will  never  be  accepted.  ,You  must  trust, 
and  ask  no  favors.  Then  God  will  give  you  what  he 
pleases.  And  most  likely,  one  day  or  another,  he  will 
give  you  some  token  of  his  love  that  will  aid  you  ;  but 
he  never  will,  if  you  bargain  for  it. 


SAVING  FAITH.  155 


Kird-of-paradise.  No  more  anxiety. 

Go  again  then  ;  do  not  wait,  nor  grieve,  nor  bargain, 
nor  doubt.  Do  not  reply  to  me,  *'Oh,  I  have  done  all 
I  can  over  and  over  again  ;  and  it  is  of  no  use."  There 
is  one  thing  you  can  do,  that  you  never  have  done  yet. 
You  can  trust  the  Saviour.  So  I  say  again,  and  keep 
saying  to  you,  *'  Only  believe." 

In  the  third  place,  let  me  say,  that  if  this  sign  were 
given  you,  it  would  be  the  most  dangerous  thing  for 
you  that  could  be  conceived.  Because  then  you  would 
trust  the  sign,  and  not  the  Saviour.  Perhaps  you  have 
read  that  story  of  the  woman,  told  in  the  ''Pastor's 
Sketches,"  who  saAV  a  beautiful  bird-of-paradise  on  a 
blue  globe,  and  believed  it  was  the  evidence  God  had 
sent  to  show  her  she  was  born  again.  Are  you  sur- 
prised to  find  that  when  she  was  asked  for  her  ground 
of  salvation,  she  had  to  tell  all  about  that  ridiculous 
dream  the  very  first  thing  ?  So  would  you,  if  you  had 
any  such  folly  in  your  mind.  And  by  and  by  you  would 
wake  to  the  consciousness  that  only  Jesus  can  save  your 
soul,  and  you  had  been  deceiving  yourself  all  this  time. 

When  you  have  given  yourself  to  Christ,  leave  your- 
self there,  and  go  about  your  work  as  a  child  in  his 
household.  When  he  has  undertaken  your  salvation, 
rest  assured  he  will  accomplish  it,  without  any  of 
your  anxiety,  or  any  of  your  help.  There  remains 
enough  for  you  to  do,  with  no  concern  for  this  part  of 
the  labor. 

Let  me  illustrate  this  posture  of  mind  as  well  as  I 
can.     A  shipmaster  was  once  out  for  three  nights  in  a 


156  SAVING   FAITH. 


Shipmaster  and  pilot.  Burden  lost. 

Storm  ;  close  by  the  harbor,  he  yet  dared  not  attempt  to 
go  in,  and  the  sea  was  too  rough  for  the  pilot  to  come 
aboard.  Afraid  to  trust  the  less  experienced  sailors,  he 
himself  stood  firmly  at  the  helm.  Human  endurance 
almost  gave  way  before  the  unwonted  strain.  Worn 
v/ith  toil,  beating  about ;  worn  yet  more  with  anxiety 
for  his  crew  and  cargo  ;  he  was  well-nigh  relinquishing 
the  wheel,  and  letting  all  go  awreck,  when  he  saw  the 
little  boat  coming,  with  the  pilot.  At  once  that  hardy 
sailor  sprang  on  the  deck,  and  with  scarcely  a  word  took 
the  helm  in  his  hand.  The  captain  went  immediately 
below,  for  food  and  for  rest ;  and  especially  for  comfort 
to  the  passengers,  who  were  weary  with  apprehension. 
Plainly  now  his  duty  was  in  the  cabin  ;  the  pilot  would 
care  for  the  ship.  Where  had  his  burden  gone  ?  The 
master's  heart  was  as  light  as  a  schoolboy's ;  he  felt 
no  pressure.  The  pilot,  too,  seemed  perfectly  uncon- 
cerned ;  he  had  no  distress.  The  great  load  of  anxiety 
had  gone  forever  ;  fallen  in  some  way  or  other  between 
them. 

Now  turn  this  figure.  We  are  anxious  to  save  our 
soul,  and  are  beginning  to  feel  more  and  more  certain 
that  we  cannot  save  it.  Then  comes  Jesus,  and  under- 
takes to  save  it  for  us.  We  see  how  willing  he  is  ;  we 
know  how  able  he  is ;  there  we  leave  it.  ,  We  let  him  do 
it.  We  rest  on  his  promise  to  do  it.  We  just  put  that 
work  in  his  hands  to  do  all  alone  ;  and  we  go  about 
doing  something  else ;  self-improvement,  comfort  to 
others,  doing  good  of  every  sort.     He  feels  no  burden. 


SAVING  FAITH.  157 


The  pilot  needs  no  help.  Leave  all  to  Christ. 

What  troubled  us  so,  does  not  trouble  him.  All  we 
need  to  do  is  to  hold  our  confidence  firm.  What  if  that 
captain  should  keep  running  up  to  see  if  the  pilot  was 
still  there  ;  or  to  offer  to  help  him  ;  or  to  make  sugges- 
tions ;  would  it  not  be  folly  ?  So,  for  us  to  keep  dis- 
tressing ourselves  about  salvation  when  we  have  given 
all  that  work  to  Christ,  is  worse  than  folly  ;  it  is  doubt- 
ing the  Saviour,  slighting  his  love,  giving  up  trust  in  him 
just  as  we  begin  it. 

When  I  find,  my  inquiring  friend,  that  you  are  dis- 
turbed because  you  have  no  word  nor  sign,  although 
)^ou  have  asked  God  to  forgive  you  and  give  you  a  new 
heart,  I  can  only  say  to  you,  tritst  him  for  that.  I  have 
two  plain  reasons  :  he  never  told  a  lie,  and  he  surely 
said,  *'Ask  whatsoever  you  will ;"  and  you  have  asked 
of  him  the  very  thing  he  desired  most  earnestly  to  give 
you. 

There,  then,  is  the  direction  found  in  a  word  ;  yet, 
oh,  how  full  of  meaning  it  is  !  '■'■Be  not  afraid ;  only  be- 
lieve!'' For  **  faith  is  the  substance  of  things  hoped 
for,  the  evidence  of  things  not  seen." 


XIV. 

PURE  RELIGION. 

Pure  religion,  and  undefiled  before  God  and  the  Father,  is 
THIS :  To  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  af- 
fliction, AND  to  keep  himself  UNSPOTTED  FROM  THE  WORLD. 
— jfames  i :  27. 

At  first  sight  this  text  looks  bad.  It  seems  subversive 
of  all  our  theologies,  and  ethics  also.  For  it  appears 
really  to  say  to  any  one,  who  is  anxious  about  his  soul's 
eternal  interests  :  **  Take  generous  care  of  poor  people, 
especially  of  women  who  have  lost  their  husbands,  and 
of  children  who  have  been  left  orphans  ;  behave  your- 
self decently  ;  do  as  well  as  you  know  how  to  keep  from 
being  worldly  ;  and  all  will  come  out  right  in  the  end  ; 
you  will  be  saved  and  safe  in  heaven." 

And  that  is  what  the  apostle  does  not  think  of  saying, 
and  it  is  not  true  either.  A  notion  so  radically  wrong 
is  a  dangerous  thing.  It  is  the  staff  of  a  bruised  reed, 
on  which  if  a  man  lean,  it  will  certainly  go  into  his  hand 
and  pierce  it. 

The  fact  is,  this  text  of  ours  is  in  no  respect  the  sim- 
ple formula  of  definition  it  looks  like.  It  has  a  profound 
start,  and  takes  a  prodigious  reach.  And  the  only  way 
to  compass  the  extraordinary  height  to  which  it  goes,  is 
to  climb  patiently  up  the  rounds  of  the  ladder  one  by 


PURE  RELIGION.  159 


Only  one  religion.  A  poetic  scheme. 

one.     Let  us  begin  at  the  beginning,  and  read  its  clauses 
quietly  over  together  ;  there  is  a  lesson  in  each. 

I.  "Pure  religion  and  undefiled."  Stop,  now,  just 
there.  The  first  proposition  found  in  the  verses  is  this  : 
There  can  be  only  one  true  personal  religion  for 

THE  human  soul. 

1.  Some  argue  for  a  mere  intellectual  scheme  of  be- 
lief. They  would  rest  everything  upon  a  certain  fixed 
group  of  articles  of  faith  and  practice.  Here  is  where 
our  denominational  systems  come  in.  Sects  may  have 
some  advantages,  but  the  bearing  of  them  does  not  seem 
to  be  in  this  direction  certainly.  What  sort  of  differ- 
ence does  it  make  as  to  my  visiting  the  widows  and 
fatherless  of  a  given  neighborhood,  whether  I  have  been 
baptized  in  one  way  or  in  another,  whether  I  was  or- 
dained by  the  laying  on  of  hands  of  one  person  or  three  ? 
The  Christian  religion  has  a  creed  of  doctrines,  and  has 
a  code  of  morals  ;  but  it  is  a  life.  And  in  the  end  it 
will  be  found,  most  likely,  that  the  Lord  has  had  his 
own  people  scattered  around  a  good  deal  from  first  to 
last. 

2.  Some  persistently  press  a  mere  poetic  scheme  of 
humane  sympathy.  There  are  many  persons  one  meets 
constantly  in  this  soft  and  cultured  age,  whose  religious 
life  might  be  covered  with  a  single  word  ;  it  consists  of 
an  amiable,  vague  kind  of  morality.  It  begins  with  a 
sigh,  '*  Oh,  I  wish  I  could  be  good  !  "  It  continues  with 
a  song,  *'  Nearer,  my  God,  to  thee  !  "  But  it  feels  no 
sense  of  sin,  and  confesses  none ;  so  it  generally  rejects 


l6o  PURE   RELIGION. 


Goo  dishness.  Mere  philan  thropy. 

need  of  an  atonement.     It  seems  just  a  sweet,  deepgood- 
ishness. 

3.  Some  would  urge  upon  us  a  mere  routine  scheme 
of  ritual.  This  is  little  more  than  sentiment  become 
artistic,  devotion  transmuted  into  devoteeism.  Emotion 
is  externalized  into  forms  and  ceremonies.  It  luxuriates 
in  festivals  and  fasts.  With  intricate  taste  it  chooses 
colors  of  vestments  and  fashions  of  robes.  And  by  and 
by  it  exhausts  its  feeble  little  force  in  fierce  discussion 
as  to  whether  the  prayers  of  a  penitent  people  would  be 
offered  better  in  a  service  in  D  minor  or  in  E  flat. 

4.  Some  seek  to  present  us  with  an  ascetic  scheme  of 
moral  observance.  Of  course,  at  its  highest  development, 
this  ends  in  the  cell  of  a  hermit,  and  the  white  veil  of  a 
nun.  But  as  we  meet  it  in  ordinary  life,  it  goes  not  much 
farther  than  rigor  of  law — an  iron  rule  of  obedience  to 
precept — and  a  strict  treasuring  of  tradition.  A  man 
says  he  purposes  to  keep  the  Sabbath  as  his  father  did 
before  him  ;  at  all  events,  his  children  shall ;  at  any 
rate,  they  shall  keep  still.  And  it  all  seems  to  amount 
to  pretty  much  the  same  thing.  Religion  is  hold- 
ing-in. 

5.  Some  insist  on  a  scheme  of  mere  philanthropy  and 
benevolence.  One  can  hardly  wonder  that  many  a  man 
grows  confused  and  stumbles  among  such  varying  sys- 
tems ;  and,  after  a  feeble  inquiry,  settles  back  upon  the 
conclusion  that  kindness,  liberality,  and  neighborly 
offices,  are  about  as  near  religion  as  anything  else.  If 
such  people  knew  there  was  a  verse  like  ours  in  the 


PURE  RELIGION.  i6l 


Who  shall  decide  ?  Jehu  and  Jehonadab. 

Bible,  they  would  flaunt  it  as  the  very  motto  on  their 
banner — till  they  learned  what  it  meant. 

II.  How  is  a  man  to  choose  ?  Who  shall  decide  when 
all  differ  so  ?  That  leads  us  on  a  step,  and  we  return 
again  to  the  text.  "  Pure  religion,  and  undefiled  before 
God  and  the  Father,  is  this."  The  next  proposition 
may  be  stated  thus  : — The  standard  of  reference,  up 

TO  WHICH  ALL  RELIGION  MUST  BE  BROUGHT,  IS  DIVINE. 

I.  It  will  not  do  to  settle  it  by  the  opinion  of  others. 
No  man's  personal  piety  can  be  registered  according  to 
the  estimate  which  even  his  best  friends  or  worst  en- 
emies have  of  it.  Yet,  w^e  must  reach  some  sort  of  ad- 
justment in  our  association  with  each  other ;  that  is 
true.  It  is  reported  of  Chalmers,  that  while  listening 
to  the  converse  of  McCheyne  and  Burns  and  the  Bo- 
nars,  and  hearing  them  say,  *'  Precious  Jesus"  so  much, 
he  exclaimed,  *' A  most  excellent  brotherhood  of  men, 
if  only  they  might  have  done  with  their  ntirsery  endear- 
ments !  "  We  call  all  of  them — Chalmers  and  the  rest — 
the  saintliest  of  God's  people  ;  but  to  them  he  appeared 
hard,  and  to  him  they  appeared  soft,  yet  they  bore  with 
each  other.  Thus  wrote  Wesley,  quoting  the  cheerful 
conversation  between  Jehonadab  and  Jehu  :  ** '  Is  thine 
heart  right,  as  my  heart  is  wdth  thy  heart?  If  it  be, 
give  me  thine  hand.'  I  do  not  mean.  Be  of  my  opin- 
ion ;  thou  needest  not ;  neither  do  I  mean,  I  will  be  of 
thine  opinion  ;  I  cannot.  Let  all  opinions  alone  ;  give 
me  thine  hand." 

2.  Nor  will  it  do  that  one's  religion  be  settled  by  him- 


1 63  PURE  RELIGION. 


Self-deception.  The  Lord  is  judge. 

self.  The  verse  in  connection  with  our  text  gives  a 
somewhat  pertinent  warning.  "  If  any  man  among  you 
seem  to  be  religious,  and  bridleth  not  his  tongue,  but 
deceiveth  his  own  heart,  this  man's  religion  is  vain." 
Here  comes  out  the  doctrine  that  one  may  seem  to  be 
religious — may  thus  deceive  his  own  heart — and  in  the 
end  his  religion  prove  to  be  valueless.  Thousands  of 
years  ago,  the  wisest  person  that  ever  lived,  declared, 
"  There  is  a  way  that  seemeth  right  unto  a  man,  but  the 
end  thereof  are  the  ways  of  death."  Any  one  can  easily 
make  a  foolish  and  perilous  mistake,  just  by  thinking 
more  highly  of  himself  than  he  ought  to  think,  and  so 
be  lost. 

3.  All  this  matter  must  be,  and  certainly  will  be,  set- 
tled by  God's  opinion,  and  none  other  whatsoever.  No 
less  authority  than  that  of  an  inspired  apostle  has  put 
on  record  this  compact  statement  of  the  whole  truth  : 
'*  But  with  me  it  is  a  very  small  thing  that  I  should  be 
judged  of  you,  or  of  man's  judgment ;  yea,  I  judge  not 
mine  own  self :  for  I  know  nothing  by  myself ;  yet  am  I 
not  hereby  justified  :  but  he  that  judgeth  me  is  the 
Lord."  The  instrument  employed  by  divine  wisdom  is 
clearly  made  known  beforehand  to  us  all.  Up  to  the 
unerring  and  unequivocal  statements  of  God's  word  are 
w^e  to  bring  all  our  maxims,  all  our  experiences,  all  our 
activities,  all  our  creeds.  If  any  man,  young  or  old, 
wishes  to  *' cleanse  his  way,"  he  is  to  "give  heed  there- 
to, according  to  the  word."  Conscience  is  regal  and 
supreme  ;  but  conscience  must  be  educated  and  enlight- 


PURE  RELIGION.  163 

'J'he  \Vord  tests.  The  weak  and  lonely. 

ened  by  inspiration.  *'  For  the  word  of  God  is  quick, 
and  powerful,  and  sharper  than  any  two-edged  sword, 
piercing  even  to  the  dividing  asunder  of  soul  and  spirit, 
and  of  the  joints  and  marrow,  and  is  a  discerner  of  the 
thoughts  and  intents  of  the  heart." 

III.  We  are  ready  to  read  on  now  somewhat  further 
in  the  text.  "  Pure  religion,  and  undefiled  before  God 
and  the  Father,  is  this  :  To  visit  the  fatherless  and  wid- 
ows in  their  affliction."  That  is  enough,  and  the  new 
thought   runs  thus :   The  test  of  all  true  personal 

RELIGION  MAY  BE 'FOUND  IN  CARE  FOR  THE  WEAK  AND 
LONELY, 

I.  The  subjects  of  Christian  charity  mentioned  here 
are  typal  as  well  as  specific.  One  mighty  question 
presses  on  this  age  of  ours — what  shall  the  strong  do  for 
the  weak  ?  Out  of  all  classes  of  feeble  people,  the  un- 
protected, and  the  helpless,  God  has  chosen  for  our  no- 
tice widows  and  orphans.  The  most  trying  condition 
in  this  world  is  brought  to  mind.  A  woman  from  whom 
has  been  taken  the  staff  and  stay  of  her  life,  is  one  of 
the  most  pitiable  objects  of  human  sympathy.  She  has 
all  the  wounded  feeling  which  any  other  mourner  has, 
and  yet  is  constrained  to  repress  it.  And  beyond  even 
that,  she  has  the  practical  prospect  of  dubious  self-sup- 
port in  the  future.  And  a  lonely  mother,  with  father- 
less children,  is  not  only  a  living  appeal  for  assistance 
and  succor,  but  a  thorough  and  exhaustive  type,  by 
which  to  teach  the  lesson  that  a  true  man's  piety  must 
be  tested  by  the  care  he  accepts  for  others. 


l64  PURE   RELIGION. 


Occasions  for  help.  Proper  Shipwrecks. 

2.  But  when  is  this  duty  binding  ?  That  brings  out 
the  occasion.  The  text  says,  "in  their  affliction,"  that  is, 
in  the  time  of  it,  and  in  the  place  of  it.  Our  help  must 
be  given  when  our  help  is  needed.  Consider  times  of 
narrowness,  of  panic,  of  business  depression,  as  offering 
special  occasion. 

Then  the  poor  are  poorer  than  ever.  And  yet  then 
our  craven,  greedy  human  nature  is  most  inclined  to  run 
to  cover.  People  begin  to  retrench,  because  of  close 
markets  ;  but  who  feel  close  markets  the  most  ?  When 
it  seems  as  if  we  had  nothing  to  sparo;  wlien  all  time  of 
leisure  is  exhausted  ;  when  one's  brain  is  heavy  with 
overwork  ;  then  our  first  impulse  is  to  draw  aside  from 
labor  among  the  poor.  But  the  slenderest  philosophy 
ought  to  be  enough  to  show  that  these  are  the  very  oc- 
casions above  all  others  when  the  need  is  most  pressing. 
What  we  feel  some,  the  poor  feel  more. 

What  if  some  cautious  sailor  on  a  vessel  of  relief,  as 
they  drift  near  a  sinking  wreck,  should  coolly  reply, 
when  the  captain  ordered  him  into  the  life-boat,  **  It  is 
always  hard  enough  to  go  out  in  the  water  to  save  peo- 
ple ;  to-night  the  sea  is  stormier  than  usual ;  it  is  really 
dangerous  to  think  of  leaping  overboard  nozv;  these  bil- 
lows are  extraordinarily  high  ;  the  air  is  chilly,  too  ;  and 
then,  look  !  the  ocean  is  positively  full  o£  drowning  men 
and  women  ;  folks  say  that  drowning  females  will  drag 
one  right  under  most  thoughtlessly  ;  it  is  dreadful  to 
think  of  it ;  why  do  not  people  shipwreck  themselves  in 
the  daytime,  and  in  warm  weather,  and  in  quiet  oceans  ? 


PURE  RELIGION.  165 


Jonathan's  staff.  The  word  "  visit." 

It  is  as  much  as  any  wise  seaman  can  do  now  to  take 
care  of  himself,  and  keep  ordinarily  comfortable  till  the 
storm  slacks  somewhat ! " 

3.  The  method  of  bestowing  help  is  next  in  order,  and 
is  all  found  in  one  word  of  the  text,  **  visit."  That  can- 
not mean  mere  contribution  of  money ;  it  means  per- 
sonal contact  with  those  we  hope  to  benefit.  So  plain  a 
statement  allows  of  no  sort  of  evasion.  It  signifies 
going  to  see  widows  and  fatherless  under  their  roofs,  if 
they  have  any ;  in  the  street,  in  the  by-ways  and  hedges, 
wherever  they  are  to  be  found.  The  vexed  question  of 
societies  is  up  at  once  for  discussion,  but  we  cannot  go 
into  it  now.  It  was  never  expected  that  Christians 
would  hand  bread  to  each  other  as  Jonathan  ate  honey 
off  the  end  of  a  staff.  The  primal  purpose  of  the  gos- 
pel was  to  render  men  brothers  of  the  same  great  house- 
hold. 

**  Ye  are  living  epistles,  known  and  read  of  all  men." 
It  is  not  expected  that  the  poor  will  be  satisfied  with  a 
general  copy  of  the  epistles,  lithographed  for  promis- 
cuous distribution.  The  one  grand  obstacle  to  all  prop- 
er endeavor  is  found  at  the  present  day  in  the  actual 
withdrawal  of  living  heart  from  living  heart  in  mutual 
acquaintance  and  interest.  Men  discharge  that  wonder- 
ful word — visit — in  mere  reluctant  substitution  of  dead 
coin  in  benefaction.  Thus  the  poor  grow  greedy  and 
thankless,  and  the  rich  harden  in  selfish  ease. 

4.  But  how  far  in  such  matters  is  one  expected  really 
to  go  ?    That  inquiry  is  answered  in  our  text  also  ;  the 


l66  PURE  RELIGION. 


The  fatherhood  of  God.  "  Unspotted." 

measure  of  obligation  is  quite  clear.  The  singular  ex- 
pression in  the  early  part  of  the  verse  finds  its  explana- 
tion just  here.  The  term  *' Father"  answers  to  the 
term  "fatherless."  That  may  be  a  reason  why  the  two 
names  ''  God  and  the  Father,"  are  joined  together,  as  if 
they  specified  two  persons.  The  significant  lesson  is 
taught  us  that  religion  is  to  be  tested  by  feeling  for  the 
fatherless,  and  the  feeling  is  to  be  measured  by  the  fath- 
erhood of  God  ! 

Now,  I  would  be  willing,  if  challenged  seriously,  to 
put  Christianity  to  proof  on  that !  Where  is  the  man 
who  has  ever  been,  in  philanthropy,  or  humanitarian 
effort,  a  parent  to  the  poor,  with  a  fatherly  care  and  pa- 
tience and  persistence  to  be  measured  by  the  fatherhood 
of  the  Father  of  Lights  ! 

IV.  Only  on  one  condition  can  this  ever  be  done  ;  this 
is  found  in  the  final  clause  of  the  text.  See  now  how 
all  the  clauses  come  in  together.  "  Pure  religion,  and 
undefiled  before  God  and  the  Father,  is  this  :  To  visit 
the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  affliction,  and  to  keep 
himself  unspotted  from  the  world."  Here  is  our  last 
lesson  to-day  :  Personal  religion  demands  the  entire 

SURRENDER  AND  SEPARATION  OF  THE  SOUL  TO  ChRIST. 

"Unspotted  from  the  world."  Oh,  how  much  that 
means  !  No  self  ;  no  waiting  for  applause ;  no  expec- 
tation of  return  ;  all  this  is  of  the  world,  w^orldly,  and 
the  true  religion  will  have  none  of  it.  Of  course,  then, 
we  all  see  this  entire  verse  is  addressed  to  Christians. 
Only  thus  can  it  be  counted  a  definition.     The  text  says 


PURE   RELIGION.  167 


Humanitarianism.  Mediaeval  legend. 

that  religion,  *'  pure  and  undefiled,"  is  for  a  converted 
man  ;  for  an  unconverted  man  it  says  nothing.  But  an- 
other text  says,  "  Seek  ye  first  the  kingdom  of  God  and 
his  righteousness."  His  duty  is  to  repent  of  his  sins, 
and  believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ;  then  it  is  his  duty 
to  care  for  the  poor  and  weak.  Humanitarianism  has 
nothing  it  does  not  borrow  from  religion.  Success  in 
all  its  enterprises  would  be  secured  better,  the  moment 
the  soul  of  the  worker  puts  on  Christ  as  a  penitent  be- 
liever. Duty  demands  the  new  life  by  the  cross.  Has 
this  ever  been  done  ?  Yes.  Almost,  at  any  rate,  by 
many  fine  sweet  lives  in  history.  Some  few,  even  in 
Sardis,  there  were,  who  did  not  defile  their  garments. 
And  at  all  events,  one  noble  life  there  has  been  that  ful- 
filled every  condition.  Jesus  Christ  set  the  example. 
**  If  any  man  have  not  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  he  is  none 
of  his." 

Will  there  be  no  end  to  this  ?  Is  a  man's  work  for  the 
poor  never  to  be  met  ?  Is  the  contribution-box  an  im- 
mortal institution  in  the  churches  ?  Ah,  just  here  comes 
out  the  profoundest  teaching  of  the  gospel !  No  end 
can  there  be;  ''The  poor  ye  have  w^th  you  always." 
And  he  w^ho  puts  on  Christ,  puts  on  also  the  burden  of 
Christ.  You  will  remember  this  the  better,  perhaps,  if 
you  rehearse  the  mediseval  legend  once  more,  the  story 
of  Christopheros. 

He  was  a  giant  man  of  Canaan,  Oifero  by  name.  He 
wanted  to  serve  the  strongest  leader  in  the  world,  and 
found  a  mighty  king,  who  took  him  in  his  army.     One 


1 68  PURE   RELIGION. 

"  For  the  dear  Lord's  sake."  Christophercs. 

day  the  king's  minstrel  sang  for  his  master,  and  when 
he  happened  to  mention  the  name  of  Satan,  the  listen- 
ing monarch  crossed  himself  as  if  in  fear.  Offero  saw 
it,  and  left  his  service,  seeking  Satan.  Oh,  soon  enough 
he  found  him,  with  his  great  train  of  war,  and  lust,  and 
pestilence,  devastating  all  the  world  !  He  became  Satan's 
soldier.  And  yet  he  perceived  Satan  would  not  be  forced 
ever  to  march  up  a  road  where  stood  a  shrine  with  the 
infant  Jesus  in  it.  So  he  left  that  service,  seeking  for 
Jesus.  He  could  not  find  him.  But  an  old  hermit  said, 
"Go  dovm  by  the  river,  and  ferry  the  weak  and  weary 
across."  So  he  labored  season  after  season,  saying  all 
the  time,  '*  For  the  dear  Lord's  sake  ;  will  he  never  come 
to  me  ! "  And  one  night  it  stormed,  and  he  heard  the 
voice  of  a  little  child,  "  Come,  carry  me  over !  "  He 
went  forth.  Flow  the  w^ind  blev/,  and  the  water  roared  ? 
But  he  lifted  the  little  one — oh,  most  beautiful  boy — on 
his  shoulder,  and  entered  the  stream.  He  staggered  at 
the  second  step.  He  just  managed  to  get  to  the  other 
bank.  **  O  my  child,"  exclaimed  he,  "who  art  thou  ?  " 
And  the  child  answered  him,  "  I  am  Jesus."  But  the 
burly  giant  continued,  "  Yet  why  so  heavy,  for  it  seemed 
to  me  thou  wouldst  have  borne  me  off  my  feet !  "  Then 
the  beautiful  boy  held  down  his  hand  with  a  great  globe 
in  its  little  palm  :  "  There,"  he  said,  "see  what  you  car- 
ried !  He  who  bears  the  Lord  Jesus  on  his  hearty  bears  also 
the  world  Jesus  holds  on  his  haiid  !  "  Then  he  called  Offero, 
Christopheros,  v^hich  means  Bearer  of  Christ. 


XV. 

FAITH   WORKING   BY   LOVE. 

For  in  Jesus  Christ  neither  circumcision  availetii  any  thing, 
NOR  uncircumcision  ;  BUT  faith  which  worketh  by  lovb.— 
Galatians  5  :  6. 

A  GREAT  many  bewildered  persons  have  asserted,  first 
and  last,  that  the  apostle  Paul  was  in  violent  theological 
conflict  with  the  apostle  James.  For  he  seems  to  say 
that  a  man  can  be  justified  by  faith  only,  and  without 
works  at  all.  While  James  says  that  faith  without 
works  is  dead,  and  a  man  may  be  justified  by  works, 
and  not  in  absolutely  every  case  is  he  justified  by  faith 
only. 

Now,  all  truth  is  consistent.  These  inspired  men  never 
meant  to  come  into  collision  in  their  views.  Their  strong 
language  must  be  interpreted  with  some  intelligible  lim- 
itation in  order  to  avoid  even  seeming  contradiction. 
James  wrote  for  a  class  of  persons  in  his  day  who  had 
been  wont  to  dwell  overmuch  on  the  more  spiritual  fea- 
tures of  religion,  and  so  forget  the  more  practical.  He, 
therefore,  intends  through  all  his  epistle  to  bring  into 
prominence  the  necessity  of  living  up  to  one's  profes- 
sions of  piety,  even  in  minor  moralities.  Paul,  on  the 
'other  hand,  writing  to  a  very  different  class  of  persons, 
who  were  continually  in  danger  of  throwing  their  whole 
8 


I/O  FAITH   WORKING  BY   LOVE. 

Paul  and  James.  David's  counsel. 

dependence  upon  a  pharisaical  performance  of  mere 
punctilios  of  outward  duty  required  by  law,  was  con- 
strained to  turn  the  force  of  his  address  more  directly 
upon  deep  experimental  elements  of  piety,  and  give 
them  nev/  pictures  of  heart-service  in  the  inner  life. 

Hence  the  entire  statements  of  both  these  men  are 
right.  Religion  is  not  a  faith  distinct  from  works,  nor 
works  separate  from  a  faith.  It  includes  and  demands 
each  of  these,  and  both  at  once. 

It  will  command  acceptance  instantly,  then,  when  one 
urges  that  cveiy  true  life  needs  these  two  elements  ;  but 
it  might  give  a  measure  of  quiet  surprise  to  assert  in  the 
same  breath  that  yet  there  is  necessary  something  quite 
beyond  both  faith  and  works  for  the  completion  of  the 
whole  pattern  set  before  us  in  Christ. 

Personal  religion  consists  of  three  things  in  one.  There 
is  in  it  a  form  of  intelligence,  first ;  then  there  is  in  it  a 
form  of  activity ;  then  there  is  in  it  a  form  of  feeling. 
Hence  it  covers  in  each  case  the  whole  manhood — the 
head,  the  hand,  and  the  heart. 

Very  frequently  the  v/ord  of  God,  in  its  artless  and 
colloquial  language,  speaks  of  one  of  these  elements  as 
if  it  embraced  all  the  rest.  Texts  can  even  be  found  in 
which  two  of  them  are  put  in  place  of  the  three.  Once, 
at  least,  in  the  Old  Testament  are  they  all  three  included. 
David  gave  this  as  dying  counsel  for  his  son  :  ''  And  thou, 
Solomon  my  son,  know  thou  the  God  of  thy  father,  and 
serv^e  him  with  a  perfect  heart,  and  with  a  willing  mind  : 
for  the  Lord  scarcheth  all  hearts,  and  understandeth  all 


FAITH  WORKING   BY   LOVE.  171 

Three  elements.  Belief  and  trust. 

the  imaginations  of  the  thoughts  :  if  thou  seek  him,  he 
will  be  found  of  thee  ;  but  if  thou  forsake  him,  he  will 
cast  thee  off  forever."  Here  we  find  all  elements  as- 
sumed :  *'know"  God,  and  ''serve"  him  with  a  ''per- 
fect heart."  That  is,  piety  demands  a  creed,  a  work,  and 
a  sentiment. 

In  the  New  Testament,  also,  we  find  one  fragment  of 
a  verse  so  felicitous  and  terse  that  it  might  well  become 
a  motto  for  Christian  living  :  "  Faith  which  worketh  by- 
love."  All  three  elements  are  included  here  likewise — ' 
intelligence,  activity,  and  affection. 

Unfortunately  for  absolute  clearness,  the  word  "  faith  " 
has  been  used  in  the  Bible  somewhat  ambiguously.  I  do 
not  suppose  we  are  to  understand  James  as  referring  to 
a  creed  only,  when  he  puts  the  sharp  question,  "What 
doth  it  profit,  my  brethren,  though  a  man  say  he  hath 
faith,  and  have  not  works  ?  Can  faith  save  him  ? "  But 
I  feel  sure  that  he  does  not  refer  to  an  experience  only. 
Perhaps  it  would  be  safe  to  say  that  he  uses  the  term 
generically,  and  seeks  to  include  tnist  as  a  living  bond 
of  union  to  Christ,  and  belief  as  an  instrument  for 
the  intelligent  apprehension  of  truth  in  its  due  rela- 
tions. 

At  any  rate,  to  be  religious  each  man  must  have  some 
creed.  Certainly  he  must  know  and  believe  that  there 
is  a  God  ;  and  he  must  understand  his  character  as  a  just 
as  well  as  a  beneficent  being  ;  then  he  must  become  ac- 
quainted with  God's  law,  as  holy  and  decisive,  reaching 
to  the  inmost  intents  of  the  heart  ;  and  then,  far  above 


172  FAITH  WORKING  BY   LOVE. 

Faith  must  "  work."  James'  "  pure  religion." 

everything  else,  he  must  be  forced  to  see  plainly  that — 
out  of  his  sovereign  grace — God  has  opened  a  way  of 
pardon  through  an  atoning  death  of  his  own  Son.  These 
must  be  known  as  primal  truths  under  the  gospel  ;  then 
they  must  be  believed,  and  that  \s  faith. 

Hence,  next  to  this  comes  activity :  faith  must  "work." 
The  earliest  instinct  of  a  redeemed  soul  is  that  of  the 
converted  apostle :  '*  Lord,  what  wilt  thou  have  me 
do  ? "  We  have  duties  to  do  which  involve  worship  of 
God,  labors  for  men,  and  improvement  of  a  spiritual 
life  in  ourselves ;  these  demand  energy  and  zeal.  We 
are  to  keep  up  a  filial  communication  with  God.  Then 
we  are  bidden  to  seek  our  neighbor's  good  :  feeding 
the  poor  by  the  wayside  ;  succoring  the  feeble  ;  comfort- 
ing the  troubled  ;  cheering  the  discouraged  ;  in  a  word, 
giving  a  warm  hand  and  a  sympathetic  ear  to  every 
voice  of  human  sorrow,  every  call  of  human  need.  Just 
so  we  owe  our  own  selves  something.  We  are  bound  to 
grow  in  grace  ;  and  that  implies  study,  discipline,  and 
cultivation.  With  all  these,  we  must  guard  against  con- 
tamination of  worldliness.  It  is  as  if  saints  were  daily 
dressed  in  whitest  raiment,  and  were  forced  to  pass 
through  the  dinginess  and  dust  of  a  defiled  roadway. 
We  are  to  keep  these  garments  of  grace  fastidiously 
pure  ;  to  protect  them  against  the  falling  flakes  and 
drifting  ashes.  Hence  we  come  back  exactly  to  another 
verse  of  James,  which  may  go  alongside  of  Paul's  motto. 
Faith  working  by  love  is  pure  religion  ;  and  **  Pure  re- 
ligion, and  undefiled  before  God  and  the  Father,  is  this, 


FAITH  WORKING  BY  LOVE.  1 73 

Must  be  some  sensibility.       .  The  Master's  spirit. 

To  visit  the  fatherless  and  widows  in  their  affliction,  and 
to  keep  himself  unspotted  from  the  world." 

Now,  I  am  persuaded  that  the  link  between  these  two 
elements,  faith  and  w^orks,  is  found  in  that  other  ele- 
ment, feeling.  Faith  alone  is  not  enough.  Faith  work- 
ing is  not  enough.  Faith  is  to  continue  working  by 
love.  And  that  is  enough,  simply  because  it  is  all  there 
is  of  it.  There  must  be  some  sensibility,  some  tender- 
ness, some  emotion,  some  mellowness  of  heart,  in  all 
personal  religion,  or  it  will  be  chill  and  lifeless  and  un- 
attractive. It  will  neither  honor  God,  nor  win  men, 
nor  fit  us  for  heaven.  This  must  be  what  James  means 
when  he  says,  ''faith  without  works  is  dead.''  And  it  all 
grows  easy  to  understand,  if  we  go  right  along  in  order. 
Faith  is  necessary  to  salvation,  and  works  are  necessary 
to  faith ;  so,  of  course,  there  is  a  sense  in  which  works 
are  necessary  to  salvation  ;  for  faith  without  works 
would  be  defective  and  lifeless. 

It  would  seem  as  if  a  true  Christian  could  not  possibly 
live  a  moment  without  experiencing  the  promptings  of 
these  new  feelings  within.  Satisfied  that  God  is  faith- 
ful, and  that  Christ  is  in  earnest,  the  believer  imbibes 
his  Master's  spirit.  He  enters  into  an  actual  joyous  re- 
pose of  soul.  All  his  powers  are  reduced  to  obedience 
to  law  and  are  working  under  rules  of  harmony  and  na- 
turalness. He  has  suddenly  come  back  to  spiritual 
health  ;  and,  like  all  convalescents,  feels  generous  and 
agreeable,  glad  to  meet  and  to  make  a  world  full  of 
friends.     Sin  is  forgiven  and  the  curse  removed  from 


174  FAITH  WORKING  BY  LOVE. 

The  stormless  sky.  Symmetry  in  religion. 

his  soul.  There  may  be  a  few  clouds  of  old  wrath  still 
hanging  over  his  head  ;  but  the  storm  is  in  full  retreat, 
and  the  thunders  already  growing  distant  are  no  longer 
for  him  to  hear.  And  through  many  a  little  rift  among 
their  folds  his  eye  at  times  gains  glimpses  of  the  pure, 
blue,  stormless  sky  beyond  them.  Now  and  then,  there 
comes  a  ray  of  serene  sunshine,  so  warm  and  fresh,  so 
bright  and  gladdening,  that  he  lifts  his  heart  in  child- 
like greeting  unto  him  who  sent  it,  and  thankfully  mur- 
murs, *'  My  Lord  and  my  God  !  " 

The  thing  seems  almost  inconceivable,  therefore,  that 
there  should  anybody  try  to  cherish  a  faith  which  is  all 
intellectuality,  or  an  activity  which  is  all  bustle,  or  a 
love  which  is  all  gushing.  For  the  symmetry  of  real 
religion  is  its  most  noble  characteristic.  Such  a  man 
as  it  necessitates  will  be  all  the  more  a  niaji  because 
of  its  possession.  There  will  be  in  him  no  mere  cold, 
crispy  orthodoxy ;  though  he  certainly  Vv'-ill  have  a  faith. 
There  will  be  in  him  no  stiffness  of  routine  or  ritual 
drill ;  though  he  certainly  will  be  found  working  in 
worship.  There  will  be  in  him  no  soft  sentimentalism 
that  exhausts  itself  in  singing ;  though  he  will  joy 
quietly  in  the  Lord  when  the  day's  labor  is  over.  But 
there  will  be  in  him  a  living  personality  of  the  indwell- 
ing Christ. 

It  is  awful  for  men  to  pervert  piety  into  pressure,  and 
turn  grace  into  grip  ;  and  no  sanctimoniousness  of  unc- 
tuous talk  can  apologize  for  it.  Pure,  sweet  sunshine  in 
God's  vineyard  v/as  never  intended  to  dry  up  and  harden 


FAITH    V/ORKING   BY   LOVE.  1/5 

The  work  of  a  vine.  Sailor  saving  men. 

the  vines  into  wire,  as  if  their  whole  autumn  work  con- 
sisted in  climbing  a  trellis  or  strangling  a  tree.  It  is 
meant  to  swell  out  fresh  buds  and  broaden  new  branches  ; 
to  warm  up  the  leaves  and  render  more  succulent  the 
tendrils  ;  and  by  and  by,  in  the  time  thereof,  to  kindle 
the  clusters  with  luminous  purple,  and  flash  their  myste- 
rious juices  into  wine. 

Indeed,  indeed,  what  this  poor,  lost,  weary  world 
needed,  on  the  night  when  the  Bethlehem  angels  sang, 
was  not  so  much  Christianity  as  it  was  Christ  !  And 
what  this  waiting,  wistful  race  wants  here  and  needs 
to-day  is  not  so  much  a  religion  as  it  is  some  religious 
men  ;  not  so  much  Christ  in  creed  and  Christ  in  miracle, 
as  it  is  Christ  in  love,  Christ  in  life,  whole,  human,  and 
humane  ! 

Let  us  look  now  for  a  picture  that  shall  exhibit  results, 
as  this  true  religion  pushes  itself  out  into  realization. 
What  shall  be  our  simile  ?  What  sort  of  life  would  that 
be  which  mingles  in  proper  proportion  faith  and  works, 
and  makes  faith  work  by  love  ? 

Let  us  suppose  a  sailor  on  the  beach  seeking  to  bring 
ashore  passengers  from  a  wrecked  ship.  He  is  protected 
by  a  rope  fastened  around  his  waist,  and  held  firmly  by 
some  one  behind  him. 

Let  us  imagine  a  miner  at  the  edge  of  a  shaft,  de- 
termined to  rescue  some  of  his  comrades  down  under- 
ground, stifling  in  the  fire-damp.  He  bends  over  the 
awful  chasm  safely,  for  there  is  a  rope  under  his  arm- 
pits, which  is  fastened  securely  to  the  windlass  behind. 


176  FAITH  WORKING  BY   LOVE. 

The  rope  of  faith.  Working  actually. 

Let  US  think  of  a  fireman  upon  a  ladder,  from  which 
he  seeks  to  be  swung  over  into  the  w^indow  of  a  blazing, 
house,  in  order  just  to  snatch  a  child  out  of  the  flames 
before  they  mount  to  the  attic.  He  is  girded  by  a  rope, 
held  by  the  people  behind  him  on  the  neighboring  roof, 
so  as  to  keep  him  in  case  the  floor  is  swept  away. 

Simple  pictures  all  of  these,  the  peculiarities  of  which 
are  the  same— a  dangerous  service  and  a  secured  help. 
You  see  how  I  must  insist  upon  the  rope  as  quite  the 
main  thing  to  start  with. 

This  is  the  faith  we  have  been  talking  about.  In  all 
spiritual  exposures,  the  Christian  relies  on  a  strength 
not  his  own.  Every  human  being  that  goes  forth  after 
a  soul  is  held  by  a  man  just  behind  him  ;  and  that  man 
here  is  Jesus  Christ.  And  the  simple  difference  between 
Christian  life  and  all  other  life  lies  in  this — a  Christian 
life  exists,  acts,  and  grows  entirely  by  a  living  faith. 

With  this  hint,  cannot  even  the  youngest  child  go 
straight  on  with  the  analysis  of  the  motto  ?  Works  come 
next  to  faith  ;  the  mere  glance  at  our  pictures  will  tell 
where  those  enter.  The  sailor  stands  on  the  beach-rock, 
the  miner  stands  on  the  shaft-edge,  the  fireman  stands 
on  the  ladder- rung  ;  but  standing  is  not  working.  What 
w^ould  you  have  these  people  do  ?  You  answer  easily. 
Let  that  sailor  forget  himself,  trust  the  rope,  plunge  into 
the  water,  and  every  instant  catch  hold  of  some  new 
swimmer,  struggling  in  his  agony.  Let  that  miner  set 
loose  the  clog  on  the  windlass,  trust  the  rope,  and  rattle 
down  into  the  depths  with  a  leap  for  life  from  ledge  to 


FAITH   WORKING  BY  LOVE.  1 7/ 

Gentleness.  Wistful,  pitiful  love. 

ledge,  looking  for  smothering  men.  Let  that  fireman 
wait  not  a  moment,  but  trust  the  rope,  spring  through 
the  shivered  glass  of  the  chamber,  and  be  off  on  his 
errand  in  the  smoke.  No  time  is  to  be  lost.  It  is  no 
boys'  play  this  !  nor  is  saving  souls  boys'  play. 

And  then  comes  the  love — oh,  word  of  inexhaustible 
meaning  !  That  demands  tenderness  and  anxiety,  brave 
deed,  and  cool  purpose.  Look  over  at  our  pictures 
again.  Let  that  sailor  be  on  his  guard,  as  he  grasps 
any  one  in  the  water  by  the  necklace  or  the  hair.  So 
let  that  miner  fold  his  arms  gently  around  the  form  of 
his  old  comrade.  He  could  bear  buffets  and  banter 
once  ;  but  he  is  not  in  condition  now.  Kept  carefully 
and  touched  kindly,  he  may  yet  breathe  again.  Let 
that  fireman  cover  his  coat  over  the  young  child's  nos- 
trils ;  nor,  however  he  may  feel  his  own  flesh  shrivel  in 
the  heat,  suffer  one  tongue  of  flame  so  much  as  to  curl 
the  hair  on  its  forehead.  For  all  these  human  beings, 
you  see,  are  down  now  to  barest  existence  ;  but  they  are 
still  alive,  and  must  be  treated  tenderly. 

Can  we  not  discern,  then,  where  the  lack  is  in  most 
of  these  modern  types  of  religion  ?  Our  lack  is  not  so 
much  in  the  element  of  intelligence  as  in  the  other  two, 
feeling  and  activity  ;  and  in  feeling  most  of  all.  There 
seems  a  want  of  earnest,  wistful,  pitiful  love  for  the 
souls  of  our  fellow-men.  There  is  too  little  delicate 
sympathy  for  human  weakness  in  our  clumsy  effort  to 
relieve  it.  We  do  not  respect  the  solemn  reserves  of 
each  soul  as  we  push,  in  the  presence  of  others,  the 


178  FAITH  WORKING  BY  LOVE. 

Kissing  a  shadow.  Unromantic  duties. 

probes  of  our  questioning  into  its  wounds.  Souls  are 
solitary  when  they  wrestle  with  God's  angel.  They  do 
not  give  their  trvist  easily,  and  never  unless  they  know 
it  is  to  a  true  friend. 

Remember  that  some  of  us  have  supreme  advantage 
in  this  respect.  ^'  God  is  love  ;  and  he  that  dwelleth  in 
love  dwelleth  in  God,  and  God  in  him."  That  is  true 
for  all,  and  yet  not  every  one  sees  it.  ''  And  we  have 
known  and  believed  the  love  that  God  hath  to  us."  Oh, 
yes !  v/e  have  knoiun  and  believed  God's  love  ;  but  men 
who  hear  only  rough,  quick  words  from  our  lips  cannot 
believe  in  ours.  We  must  make  them  reach  confidence 
in  the  sincerity  of  our  affection  by  supreme  endeavor  of 
patient  forbearance  and  regard.  Think  of  the  faith  that 
old  Crimean  soldier  had  in  Florence  Nightingale,  when 
he  lifted  his  aching  body  up  just  to  kiss  her  shadow  as 
it  suddenly  ran  along  the  wall ! 

Oh,  we  need  men — need  them  now  supremely — ready 
for  great,  plain,  unromantic  duties  !  We  are  in  deplora- 
ble lack  of  men  and  v^omen,  who  love  God  with  all  their 
hearts,  and  who  love  their  fellow-men  as  they  do  them- 
selves. We  need  men  and  women  whose  souls  grow 
fresher  and  younger,  each  time  they  come  to  the  Lord's 
table.  This  age  of  ours,  cold  and  uncompromising, 
thoroughly  disrespectful  and  suspicious  of  all  shams,  de- 
mands a  new  piety  ;  a  piety  frank  in  rebuking  sin  and 
firm  in  resisting  it,  but  tender  and  merciful  when  it  seeks 
to  lift  the  man  wlio  is  defiled  by  it.  It  clamors  now 
for  no  singular  or  dramatic  experiences  of  conversion, 


FAITH   WORKING  BY  LOVE.  179 

The  world's  demand.  Satisfied  at  last 

least  of  all  a  something  called  a  second  conversion.  He 
who  is  the  meetest  of  saints  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
he  who  is  the  surest  to  enter  heaven,  may  not  at  all  be 
the  one  who  has  the  most  graphic  story  to  tell  of  con- 
viction and  wrestle,  succeeded  by  some  disclosure  of 
sunshiny  and  bird-singing  peace  afterward  ;  nor  he 
who  has  the  longest  and  most  voluble  formulas  of 
prayer  to  rehearse  on  sudden  public  call.  It  is  possible 
that  it  may  be  even  that  unsuspected  believer  who 
trusts  Christ  in  the  humblest  way,  dependent  on  him 
for  pardon,  and  he  whose  whole  life  is  milder  and  mel- 
lower as  he  moves  patiently  on  toward  its  end  and 
crown. 

Indeed,  we  come  back  to  the  point  at  which  we 
started  ;  there  is  no  getting  beyond  it.  The  poor,  per- 
plexed world  says  it  will  be  satisfied  only  with  a  faith 
which  worketh  by  love. 


XVI. 

THE   SWEAT   OF   BLOOD. 

And  being  in  an  agony,  he  prayed  more  earnestly  :  and  his 
sweat  was  as  it  were  great  drops  of  blood  falling  down 

TO   THE   GROUND. — Luke  22  :   44. 

The  theme  for  study  next  offered  is  stated  thus : 
**  Suffering  saints  find  comfort  in  Christ."  He  is  called 
"The  Perfect  Pattern  ;"  and  we  are  assured,  in  the  pas- 
sage chosen  from  one  of  Simon  Peter's  epistles,  that  by 
following  him  closely  we  shall  return  unto  '*  the  Shep- 
herd and  Bishop  of  our  souls."  (i  Peter  2  :  19-25.) 

I  judge  that  a  single  incident  in  our  Saviour's  career 
may  be  made  to  serve  a  more  effective  purpose  than 
any  general  rehearsal  of  the  whole  of  it.  And  I  choose 
for  detailed  consideration  his  agony  in  the  garden  of 
Gethsemane. 

The  apostle  announces  the  principle  that  suffering  is 
actually  w^elcome  so  as  to  be  worthy  of  thanks,  on  three 
conditions  :  it  is  to  be  gained  conscientiously,  endured 
patiently,  and  inflicted  unjustly.  For  this  was  the  form 
of  Jesus'  trials  ;  they  came  upon  him  in  aur  behalf,  and 
as  our  pattern,  and  for  our  emulation. 

The  particulars  he  holds  up  as  specially  designed  for 
our  imitation  are  our  Lord's  sinlessness  and  sincerity, 
his  patience  and  self-control,  his  courage  and  unbroken 


THE   SWEAT   OF   BLOOD.  l8l 

Christ  our  pattern.  Physical  pain. 

trust.  All  these  are  seen  in  their  highest  degree  as  he 
kneels  beneath  the  olives  in  the  garden,  just  before  he 
is  betrayed.  "  For  this  is  thank-worthy,  if  a  man  for 
conscience  toward  God  endure  grief,  suffering  wrong- 
fully. For  even  hereunto  were  ye  called :  because 
Christ  also  suffered  for  us,  leaving  us  an  example,  that 
ye  should  follow  his  steps  :  who  did  no  sin,  neither  was 
guile  found  in  his  mouth  :  who,  when  he  was  reviled, 
reviled  not  again  ;  when  he  suffered,  he  threatened  not ; 
but  committed  himself  to  him  that  judgeth  right- 
eously." 

The  sight  of  moral  disease  affects  the  ordinary  human 
mind  less  than  that  of  mental  ruin  ;  and  either  of  these 
makes  less  impression  than  that  of  mere  physical  pain. 
One  who  passes  through  the  wards  of  a  hospital  be- 
comes burdened  and  feverish  with  overstrained  feeling. 
He  would  have  much  less  oppression  in  an  insane  asy- 
lum, and  would  return  with  a  kind  of  curious  interest 
after  a  visit  to  a  jail.  Perhaps  this  suggests  a  constitu- 
tional reason  v/hy  the  church  at  large  dwells  so  much 
on  the  bodily  sufferings  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  It  is 
easy  to  appreciate  the  pain  of  a  nailed  hand,  a  pierced 
side,  or  a  transfixed  foot.  Hence,  the  most  morbid  and 
even  shocking  pictures  of  the  crucifixion  scene  are  half 
welcomed  by  many  a  mystic  devotee,  who  magnifies 
and  measures  the  love  of  his  Saviour  by  the  pangs  he 
endured,  the  lacerations  and  wounds. 

The  scene,  introduced  to  us  by  the  verse  in  the  gos- 
pel, is  calculated  always  to  attract  attention.     It  will  re- 


1 82  THE   SWEAT   OF  BLOOD. 

The  ancient  collect  Luke,  a  physician. 

ward  our  severest  study.  But  we  shall  find  ourselves 
confronted  with  a  form  of  anguish  unshared,  unparal- 
leled, and  unexplained.  There  is  mystery  in  the  details 
of  its  description  ;  in  the  circumstances  of  its  occur- 
rence ;  in  even  the  fact  of  its  record.  Oh,  how  little  we 
know  of  what  we  so  often  call  Christ's  "agony  in  the 
garden  ! " 


I.  There  is  mystery  in  the  details  of  its  descrip- 
tion. 

One  venerable  collect  there  is,  found  in  an  ancient 
liturgy,  which  it  becomes  us  reverently  to  offer  here,  as 
Vv'e  begin  our  investigations: — ''Almighty  God,  who 
calledst  Luke  the  physician,  whose  praise  is  in  the  gos- 
pel, to  be  an  evangelist,  and  physician  of  the  soul ;  may 
it  please  thee,  that,  by  the  wholesome  medicines  of  the 
doctrine  delivered  by  him,  all  the  diseases  of  our  souls 
may  be  healed  ;  through  the  merits  of  thy  Son  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord.     Amen." 

I.  The  single  writer. — The  history  of  this  part  of  our 
Saviour's  anguish  is  recorded  by  only  one  of  the  evan- 
gelists. Neither  Matthew,  Mark,  nor  John  makes  any 
allusion  to  a  sweat-like  blood  in  Gethsemane.  It  may 
not  go  very  far  in  explanation  of  this  strange  fact,  but 
it  can  be  stated  for  what  it  is  worth,  and  probably  will 
help  some  minds,  that  Luke,  who  narrates  this  extraor- 
dinary circumstance,  was  a  physician  by  profession,  and 
in  many  instances  in  his  gospel,  discoverable  by  compar- 
ing it  with  the  others,  shows  his  observation  of  matters 


THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD.  1 83 

"  As  it  were."  Did  Jesus  sweat  blood  ? 

peculiar  to  his  calling.  It  is  certain  that  this  particular 
in  the  garden-suffering  of  Jesus  would  powerfully  arrest 
his  imagination,  and  impress  his  remembrance. 

2.  The  singular  language. — Our  version  of  Luke's 
story  is  positively  accurate.  Let  us  read  it  over  again  : 
• — **  His  sweat  was  as  it  were  great  drops  of  blood  fall- 
ing down  to  the  ground."  This  formula  of  comparison, 
thus  used,  deserves  close  notice.  Th3  verse  does  not 
say  that  Jesus  sweat  blood,  but  that  what  he  did  sweat 
v/as  like  drops  of  blood  falling.  The  same  word  I  have 
counted  as  occurring  thirty-four  times  in  the  New  Tes- 
tament. In  six  instances  it  is  translated  ''like;"  in 
seven,  ''as;"  in  eighteen,  "about;"  in  two,  "as  it  had 
been;"  in  one — this  one  here — "as  it  were."  Luke 
knows  his  own  term  ;  and  he  says  the  Holy  Ghost  was 
like  a  dove,  and  that  Stephen's  face  was  as  it  had  been 
the  face  of  an  angel ;  that  is,  each  of  these  seemed  so ; 
for  the  same  adverb  is  used  there  as  here.  Indeed,  in 
no  passage  in  all  the  New  Testament  does  the  expression 
"like,"  or  "as  it  were,"  signify  fact;  it  merely  means 
resemblance.  Shall  we,  then,  assert  that  Jesus  did  not 
shed  the  traditional  blood-sweat  in  his  agony  ?  No  ; 
not  necessarily.  But  we  ought  not  to  be  dogmatic 
about  it.  It  seems  inexplicable  that  Luke  should  men- 
tion blood  at  all,  if  there  was  no  real  blood  to  speak  of. 
Drops  of  perspiration  are  just  as  specific,  graphic,  pic- 
turesque as  any  other  drops,  if  only  force  of  style  was 
what  he  wanted.  It  is  better  to  understand  that,  min- 
gled with   the   profuse   moisture   upon   Jesus'   person, 


1 84  THE   SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

Sleeping  for  sorrow.  The  third  prayer. 

there  came  forth,  under  a  stress  of  new  agony,  the  stain 
of  real  blood,  falling  on  the  ground. 


II.  There  is  mystery  in  the  circumstances  of  this 

OCCURRENCE. 

We  shall  see  this  if  we  note  the  exact  time  of  it,  the 
immediate  occasion  of  it,  the  rare  nature  of  it,  and  the 
exhaustive  violence  of  it. 

1.  The  Time. — It  is  most  touching  and  pitiable  to  see 
our  lonely  Lord  going  to  and  from  the  slumbering  dis- 
ciples, backward  and  forward,  restless  and  unsatisfied, 
as  the  hours  pass  wearily  on.  How  little  they  knew  of 
his  trial  !  Again  and  again  he  prayed.  The  disciples 
surrendered  ;  nobody  tells  us  why  but  Luke.  He  drew 
from  his  own  experience  as  a  professional  man  the  fact 
that  sympathy  is  very  wearing,  and  urges  to  drowsiness. 
So  he  adds,  charitably :  *'  He  found  them  sleeping  for 
sorrow."  Thus  they  lay  heavily  on  the  sward,  and  that 
burdened  Redeemer  w^alked  alone  amid  the  shadows, 
ever,  as  before,  going  "a  little  further"  under  their 
gloom.  Yet  this  would  not  do.  He  must  have  a  word, 
a  look,  a  sign,  from  his  Father's  throne.  Just  in  the 
line  of  incident,  then,  comes  this  phenomenon.  It  was 
connected  with  the  third  prayer. 

2.  The  Occasion. — Two  prayers  had  seemingly  failed 
thus  far,  except  insomuch  as  they  bore  by  reflex  action 
on  Jesus'  personal  experience.  He  had  not  yet  in  ex- 
act answer  received  his  request.  Girding  himself  anew 
then  for  a  still  mightier  exercise  of  faith,  submission, 


THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD.  1 85 

Growth  in  submission.  A  misconception. 

and  importunity,  he  knelt  upon  the  sward.  Then  na- 
ture gave  way.  In  the  stress  of  that  strong  supplica- 
tion, the  natural  barriers  of  blood  were  rended,  and  his 
sweat  was  tinged. 

We  cannot  fail,  therefore,  to  connect  this  rupture  with 
the  act  of  prayer.  **  Being  in  an  agony,  he  prayed  more 
earnestly."  The  expression  means  more  intensely,  more 
strenuously.  The  singularity  of  this  form  of  statement 
lies  in  the  implication  it  evidently  makes  that  Jesus 
could  be  less  earnest  at  one  time  than  another  in  his 
prayers.  It  represents  him  as  actually  growing  in  the 
experience  of  submitting  his  will  to  his  Father's.  There 
is  no  force  nor  fixedness  in  language  if  this  narrative 
does  not  teach  that  he  discovered  there  was  need  of 
greater  vehemence  in  spiritual  fervor  than  that  with 
which  he  had  begun  to  pray. 

We  must  drop  our  preconceived  notions  of  a  mere 
theanthropic  Messiah  here,  and  accept  the  picture  of  a 
historic  Jesus.  It  is  plain  that  our  Saviour  entered 
Gethsemane  with  a  wish  in  his  mind  which  was  not  in 
accordance  with  his  Father's  will.  In  expressing  it,  he 
remained,  as  ever,  sinless,  for  he  had  no  purpose  which 
he  meant  to  carry  out  into  wilfulness.  All  this  time, 
however,  he  w^as  putting  his  will  at  school.  It  cost  him 
a  conflict  which  he  had  never  before  experienced.  Call 
that  **cup  "  what  you  please  ;  he  distinctly  asked  to  be 
permitted  to  decline  it,  and  only  after  severe  struggle 
acquiesced — **Thy  will,  not  mine."  This  must  be  the 
plain  reference  of  that  tremendous  passage  in  the  epistle 


lS6  THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

"  He  learned  obedience."  Charles  IX, 

to  the  Hebrews,  where  we  are  told  concerning  Jesus, 
that  "  in  the  days  of  his  flesh,  wiien  he  had  offered  up 
prayers  and  supplications,  with  strong  crying  and  tears, 
unto  him  that  was  able  to  save  him  from  death,  and  was 
heard  in  that  he  feared  ;  though  he  were  a  Son,  yet 
learned  he  obedience  by  the  things  which  he  suffered." 

3.  The  Nature. — But  the  moment  the  spirit  became 
willing,  it  was  evident  that  the  flesh  was  weak.  What 
the  mind  can  do  in  its  regnant  power  over  the  body  has 
never  been  fully  tested  for  record.  The  trouble  is,  the 
register  breaks  in  the  moment  of  measurement.  We 
can  hardly  understand  this  curious  effect  of  Jesus'  dis- 
tress upon  him.  The  medical  books,  we  are  told,  are 
not  without  authentic  instances  of  strong  mental  emo- 
tions having  bent  and  broken  the  physical  frames  of 
men.  The  cases  are  rare,  but  by  no  means  unknown  ; 
and  one  historic  illustration  has  never  been  denied.  It 
is  recorded  that  Charles  the  Ninth,  of  France,  was,  upon 
his  death-bed,  so  overcome  by  pangs  of  remorse  under 
the  awful  recollection  of  the  Saint  Bartholomew  massa- 
cre he  had  ordered,  that  his  blood  was  actually  driven 
through  the  pores  of  his  skin,  and  stained  the  linen  on 
which  he  lay.  So  that  we  need  not  regard  the  small 
cavils  of  those  who  declare  the  record  incredible,  even 
if  taken  in  the  most  literal  way.  Sweat  of  blood  is  not 
frequent,  certainly ;  but  it  cannot  be  called  impossible. 

4.  The  Violence. — There  can  be  no  doubt,  at  all  events, 
of  the  physical  effect  of  this  exhaustion  upon  Jesus. 

This  sweat  of  blood  remains  as  the  highest  evidence 


THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

187 

Celestial  succor. 

A  mysterious  record. 

to  show  the  rending  laceration,  the  unfathomable  depths, 
and  the  awful  extremity  of  that  hour's  pain.  He  broke 
down  utterly  and  irretrievably  under  it.  A  necessity 
arose  for  divine  interposition  and  succor,  or  he  could 
not  go  on.  ''There  appeared  an  angel  unto  him  from 
heaven,  strengthening  him." 

Now,  it  might  be  expected  that  at  this  point  there 
would  be  a  mystery.  Who  was  this  angel  ?  What  did 
he  do  ?  No  other  evangelist  even  mentions  the  occur- 
rence. Some  excellent  people  have  been  stumbled  to 
think  that  an  angel — a  created  being— should  be  sent  to 
help  the  Creator.  Here  is  a  silly  misconception  again. 
Our  Lord  laid  aside  so  much  of  his  divine  nature  and 
glory  as  was  necessary  for  him  to  become  fairly  resident 
m  a  human  being,  '*a  little  lower  than  the  angels." 
And  in  some  way,  not  explained  to  us,  that  radiant  mes- 
senger renewed  Jesus'  strength,  recruited  his  exhausted 
frame,  and  raised  him  from  his  otherwise  fatal  exhaus- 
tion. 

HI.  There  is  mystery  in  the  fact  that  this  record 
WAS  made. 

We  reach  our  highest  wonder  at  this  point.  Three 
questions  meet  us  in  the  same  breath.  When  was  this 
record  put  in  the  Bible  ?  How  was  it  put  in  ?  Why  was 
it  put  in  ? 

I.  When  was  it  put  in  ?  For  the  singular  fact  con- 
fronts us  that  it  is  not  in — neither  this  verse  nor  the  one 
which  precedes  it — in  many  of  the  old  manuscript  cop- 


l88  THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

The  verse  genuine.  How  did  Luke  know  ? 

ies  of  this  gospel.  Some  of  our  ablest  commentators 
doubt  whether  it  really  belongs  in  the  New  Testament 
at  all.     They  simply  reject  the  story. 

All  this  seems  rash  and  uncalled  for.  Of  course  we 
readily  understand  why  any  ancient  transcriber  should 
be  tempted  to  leave  these  verses  out  from  the  few  copies 
where  they  are  missing ;  it  may  have  seemed  to  him, 
perhaps,  that  such  a  story  of  utter  humiliation  dishon- 
ored the  Son  of  God.  But  nobody  could  understand 
why  a  transcriber  should  invent  so  preposterous  a  thing, 
aud  thrust  it  into  the  many  copies  where  it  appears. 
Hence  the  last  critics  have  no  hesitancy  in  holding  that 
all  the  record  is  authentic,  just  as  genuine  as  any  other 
part  of  the  gospel  Luke  has  given  us. 

2.  How  was  it  put  in  ?  That  is,  how  did  Luke  know 
about  so  extraordinary  a  phenomenon  as  this  ?  Mat- 
thew and  John  were  among  the  immediate  disciples  of 
our  Lord.  And  the  hazardous  conjecture  has  been 
made  that  Mark  was  that  **  young  man  "  whom  he  him- 
self alone  mentions,  who  followed  Jesus  *'with  a  linen 
cloth  cast  about  his  naked  body."  But  nobody  has 
ever  gone  further  than  to  offer  a  proofless  suggestion 
that  Luke  may  have  been  one  of  those  who  met  our 
Saviour  on  the  journey  to  Emmaus.  And  even  the  wild 
remark  is  on  record  that  possibly  the^  marks  of  the 
blood-drops  would  be  visible  after  the  termination  of 
the  agony  !  But  no  scholarly  argument  can  be  held  for 
an  instant  to  show  that  this  evangelist  ever  set  his  eyes 
upon  Jesus'  face,  or  ever  visited  Gethsemane  before  the 


THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD.  189 

Why  related  ?  Christ's  example. 

resurrection.  Luke  was  Paul's  physician,  and  his  his- 
tory comes  later.  The  quickest  explanation  is  decidedly 
the  best,  and  the  only  one.  The  facts  were  communi- 
cated to  these  inspired  writers,  as  the  facts  of  the  crea- 
tion were  communicated  to  Moses,  or  the  facts  about 
Cyrus  to  Isaiah.  "  Holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost." 

3.  Why  was  it  put  in  ?  Here  w^e  reach  the  main  ques- 
tion, the  most  momentous  and  most  far-reaching  mortal 
lips  can  ask.  To  human  comprehension  this  hour  of 
garden-agony  is  the  one  awful  thing  of  the  Bible.  If 
there  can  be  another  wonder  deeper  than  this,  that  Jesus 
should  be  humiliated  so,  it  is  that  all  the  ages  should  be 
told  of  it.  Why  was  not  this  pain  and  shame  covered 
up  from  mortal  gaze  with  a  decorous  darkness  like  that 
which  veiled  the  corresponding  agony  on  the  cross  ? 
Why  send  the  curious  eyes  of  men  peering  among  the 
shadows  of  Gethsemane,  that  they  might  report  such 
conflict  of  Immanuel,  when  he  v^as  at  the  lowest  ?  Now 
for  one,  I  would  hush  my  voice,  and  cover  my  face,  in 
utter  abandonment,  if  there  had  not  been  put  on  my  lips 
an  answer  by  inspiration  itself. 

Listen  to  these  words :  **  Christ  also  suffered  for  us, 
leaving  us  an  example,  that  ye  should  follow  his  steps." 
What  Jesus  endured  on  the  cross  lies  between  him  and 
his  Father,  and  may  well  be  covered  up.  What  he  en- 
dured in  the  moonlight  in  the  garden  lies  between  him 
and  us,  and  we  have  a  lesson  to  learn  from  it.  He  was 
showing  how  a  human  will,  which  it  was  possible  to  set 


190  THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

"  Our  infirmities."  •'  Yet  without  sin." 

against  the  divine,  could  be  subdued  into  submission  to 
it.  It  was  a  lesson  for  every  tempted  man.  Hence  the 
declaration,  *'  For  verily  he  took  not  on  him  the  nature 
of  angels  ;  but  he  took  on  him  the  seed  of  Abraham." 
"  Forasmuch  then  as  the  children  are  partakers  of  flesh 
and  blood,  he  also  himself  likewise  took  part  of  the 
same."  Immanuel  was  ''God  with  us;"  not  a  divine 
soul  in  a  human  body  merely,  but  a  divine  person  in  a 
human  nature  precisely  like  our  own.  He  could  hunger 
and  thirst ;  he  could  burn  and  shiver  ;  be  weary  and  feel 
pain.  He  took  a  human  nature  like  Adam's,  which  was 
fallible,  and  could  commit  sin.  That  he  never  did  com- 
mit any  sin  was  because  the  human  nature  he  took  was 
supported  by  the  divine.  **  Himself  bare  our  infirm- 
ities." If  it  had  been  in  every  sense  impossible  for  him 
to  be  touched  by  evil  passions,  or  solicited  by  evil  appe- 
tites, or  agitated  by  evil  ambitions,  he  would  have  been 
no  pattern  for  you  and  for  me. 

All  that  call,  in  Gethsemane,  to  his  disciples — ''Rise 
and  pray,  lest  ye  enter  into  temptation  " — would  go  for 
nothing,  unless  there  was  some  apprehension  of  over- 
throw in  his  case  that  might  be  paralleled  in  theirs.  He 
could  do  all  things  through  the  divine  nature  which 
strengthened  him  ;  and  we  can  do  all  things  through 
Christ,  who,  by  his  promised  Spirit,  will  strengthen  us. 
He  was  a  man  who  never  sinned  ;  to  show  us  there  could 
be  a  man  who  should  never  sin.  So  was  he  "  in  all 
points  tempted  like  as  we  are,  yet  without  sin."  He 
assumed  our  weaknesses  and  exposures,  as  well  as  some 


THE   SWEAT  OF  BLOOD.  IQI 

Less  help  than  we.  Resist  unto  blood. 

of  our  succors  and  defences,  just  to  make  us  see  that 
these  could  in  all  cases  offset  each  other.  That  is,  he 
entered  into  our  commonplace  conflicts  to  render  it 
eternally  clear  they  could  be  fought  out  into  triumphs. 
He  had  less,  indeed,  of  help  than  we  have  ;  for  have  we 
not  his  own  bright  example,  his  inspiriting  encourage- 
ments, and. his  sweet  promises  ?  God  has  said  to  each 
one  of  us,  *'  I  knew  that  thou  art  obstinate,  and  thy  neck 
is  an  iron  sinew,  and  thy  brow  brass."  It  is  the  office 
of  our  life's  discipline  to  bend  that  sinew  of  iron,  and 
break  that  brow  of  brass. 

"Wherefore,  holy  brethren,  partakers  of  the  heavenly 
calling,  consider  the  Apostle  and  High  Priest  of  our 
profession,  Christ  Jesus."  He  sweat  blood  in  the  gar- 
den to  teach  us  that  we  cannot  duly  have  *'  considered  " 
him,  as  long  as  we  *'  have  not  yet  resisted  unto  blood, 
striving  against  sin."  As  in  the  temptation  he  proved 
Satan  could  be  conquered  with  three  tests,  so  in  the 
agony  he  proved  that  human  will  could  be  subdued 
with  three  prayers. 

**  Could  ye  not  watch  with  me  one  hour  ? "  On  these 
misimproved  hours  of  heavenly  instruction  will  event- 
ually be  lodged  some  of  our  saddest  regrets  if  ever 
we  fall  into  sin.  Simon  Peter,  out  in  the  quadrangle, 
beside  the  fire  of  coals,  must  have  felt  one  single 
question  of  the  soldier  far  more  than  all  the  gibes 
of  the  maid :  **  Did  not  I  see  thee  in  the  garden  with 
him?" 

But  the  encouragement  is  even  beyond  the  admoni- 


192  THE  SWEAT  OF  BLOOD. 

The  litany.  Homeward  steps. 

tion.  Would  not  he,  who  was  willing  to  suffer,  be  will- 
ing to  succor  also  ?  So  let  us  pray  :  *'  By  thine  agony 
and  bloody  sweat ;  by  thy  cross  and  passion  ;  by  thy 
precious  death  and  burial ;  by  thy  glorious  resurrection 
and  ascension  ;  and  by  the  coming  of  the  Holy  Ghost ; 
good  Lord,  deliver  us  ! " 

So  now  we  come  legitimately  back  from  our  illustra- 
tion in  the  gospel  to  the  lesson  in  the  epistle  upon  which 
our  study  needs  to  close.  We  see  what  the  apostle  means 
when  he  concludes :  *'  For  ye  were  as  sheep  going  astray, 
but  are  now  returned  unto  the  Shepherd  and  Bishop  of 
your  souls." 

There  are  just  three  homeward  steps  for  every  human 
being  entering  into  the  spirit  and  advantage  of  our  Sav- 
iour's suffering.  Think  what  we  all  once  have  been  : 
*' sheep  going  astray."  See  what  Jesus. now  is:  ''the 
Shepherd  and  Bishop"  of  souls.  Come  close  to  him 
with  a  hearty  ''return." 

"For  thus  saith  the  Lord  God,  Behold  I,  even  I,  will 
both  search  my  sheep,  and  seek  them  out.  I  will  feed 
them  in  a  good  pasture,  and  upon  the  high  mountains 
of  Israel  shall  their  fold  be  :  there  shall  they  lie  in  a 
good  fold,  and  in  a  fat  pasture  shall  they  feed  upon  the 
mountains  of  Israel.  I  will  feed  my  flock,  and  I  will 
cause  them  to  lie  down,  saith  the  Lord  God." 


XVII. 

SIN   CLEANSED   BY  BLOOD. 

The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleanseth  us  from  all 
SIN. — I  John  1 :  7. 

An  interesting  story  has  been  related  in  one  of  our 
missionary  periodicals  concerning  a  faithful  minister 
now  laboring  in  the  foreign  field.  While  traveling  once 
in  India,  he  discovered,  in  a  retired  spot  by  the  wayside, 
a  man  lying  on  the  earth.  Seen  at  a  distance,  he  ap- 
peared to  be  asleep.  He  judged  him  to  be  one  of  those 
singular  heathen  devotees,  so  often  in  that  land  encoun- 
tered upon  their  painful  pilgrimages,  and  supposed  that, 
fatigued  with  his  protracted  journey,  he  had  fallen  on 
the  ground  for  rest. 

Coming  up  to  him,  however,  he  found  that  the  man 
was  really  in  a  dying  state,  just  breathing  his  last. 
Kneeling  down  by  his  side,  and  solicitous  to  give  help 
or  bring  comfort  to  one  in  such  mortal  extremity,  he 
put  the  question  in  the  native  language  :  **  Brother, 
what  is  your  hope  for  eternity  ? " 

Faintly,  but  with  an  expression  of  delighted  surprise, 
the  man  replied  :  *'  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son 
cleanseth  us  from  all  sin."  His  strength  failed  him  with 
the  mere  repetition  of  these  inspired  words ;  and  in  a 
moment  more,  the  soul  of  this  unknown  believer  had 

9 


194  SIN   CLEANSED   BY   BLOOD. 

The  Bengalee  convert.  "  Brother,  your  hope  ?  " 

passed  out  of  human  sight,  and  was  in  the  presence  of 
God.  Subdued  into  unutterable  emotion  at  thus  sud- 
denly confronting  death,  there  in  so  secluded  a  retreat, 
the  missionary  gazed  upon  the  lifeless  body,  silently 
wondering  who  this  strange  fellow-Christian  might  be. 
His  eye  caught  a  glimpse  of  a  fragment  of  paper  closely 
clasped  in  the  dead  man's  hand.  On  examination,  this 
proved  to  be  a  detached  leaf  of  the  Bengalee  Testament. 
And  on  it  were  traced  the  words  which  that  Hindoo 
convert  had  repeated  with  trustful  reliance,  as  he  floated 
out  alone  upon  that  shoreless  sea  of  eternal  existence 
which  rolls  all  around  the  world. 

There  comes  an  hour  to  every  individual,  when  that 
same  impressive  question  must  be  answered  wnth  equal 
explicitness  :  *'  Brother,  what  is  your  hope  for  eternity  ? " 
There  will  be  a  day  when  each  one  of  us  will  withdraw 
quietly  from  the  dusty  road  of  human  travel,  and  seek 
some  undisturbed  spot  in  which  to  die.  A  score  of 
wrong  replies  may  be  made  then,  when  it  will  be  too 
late  for  a  man  to  make  any  other.  That  which  the  Ben- 
galee believer  made  is  the  only  safe  one  ;  and  that  has 
to  be  understood  earlier. 

It  is  a  useless  thing  to  assert  with  persistent  vehe- 
mence that  it  matters  little  or  nothing  as  to  what  a  man 
believes,  provided  he  is  only  sincere.  It  makes  a  great 
deal  of  difference  what  a  man  believes.  Faith  decides 
character,  and  character  fixes  destiny.  *'  As  a  man 
thinketh  in  his  heart,  so  is  he."  Theory  governs  life, 
and  life  it  is  that  opens  the  door  of  eternity. 


SIN   CLEANSED   BY   BLOOD.  I9S 

The  one  Mediator.  The  words  "  He  "  and  "  liar." 


It  was  long  ago  declared  possible  for  human  beings, 
under  a  strong  delusion,  to  believe  a  lie.  If  any  one 
does  that,  the  more  sincere  he  is  in  it,  the  worse  he  is 
off.  Jesus  of  Nazareth  is  the  one  mediator  between 
God  and  man;  so  says  inspiration  :  *' Neither  is  there 
salvation  in  any  other  :  for  there  is  none  other  name 
under  heaven  given  among  men,  whereby  we  must  be 
saved."  There  is  one  clear  way  of  salvation  from  sin  ; 
there  is  one  relief  from  the  burden  of  wrath  and  guilt ; 
but  there  are  riot  two. 

When  the  apostle  John,  who  generally  seems  so  gen- 
tle, breaks  out  in  the  strong  expression :  *'  If  we  say 
that  we  have  not  sinned,  we  make  God  a  liar,  and  his 
word  is  not  in  us,"  we  are  inevitably  thrown  into  con- 
sternation. Instinctively  we  look  at  the  connection  of 
such  sentences,  to  see  if  we  may  not  have  mistaken  the 
meaning.  Then  we  are  startled  to  read  again  a  fresh 
reiteration  of  the  same  statement  :  *'  If  we  say  that  we 
have  fellowship  with  God,  and  walk  in  darkness,  we 
lie,  and  do  not  the  truth."  Such  language  appears 
to  delicate-minded  people  somewhat  violent  and  ex- 
treme. 

Moreover,  it  awakes  opposition.  To  hear  an  inspired 
preacher  bandying  around  those  words  lie  and  //^r,  which 
no  one  in  this  life  takes  tamely,  seems  extravagant.  It 
always  surprises  us  to  find  an  habitually  mild  man  using 
such  rough  epithets.  But  if  we  are  forced  to  the  con- 
viction that  he  is  thoroughly  in  earnest,  and  really 
means  what  he  says,  then  we  forget  the  speaker  in  the 


196  SIN   CLEANSED   BY  BLOOD. 

A  possible  mistake.  God  cannot  lie. 

violence  of  the  sentiment.  We  begin  stubbornly  to 
deny  the  charges. 

Now  here  the  beloved  disciple  interposes  a  single  dep- 
recation. He  is  charitable  enough  to  suppose  that  no 
one  would  condemn  us  unheard.  He  allows  the  sup- 
position of  half-innocent  77iistake  upon  our  part.  He 
says :  '*  If  we  say  that  we  have  no  sin,  we  deceive  our- 
selves, and  the  truth  is  not  in  us."  But  even  this  does 
not  take  off  the  sharp  edge  altogether.  For  we  have 
no  notion  we  are  so  utterly  dull  in  our  self-knowledge  ; 
no  one  admits  that  he  is  so  miserably  deceived  as  this. 
The  fact  is  undeniable  ;  most  men  have  no  true  convic- 
tion of  personal  guilt,  such  as  demands  ignorance  for 
an  apology,  or  offers  it  as  an  exculpation.  At  all  events, 
we  are  not  willing  meekly  to  be  told  that  the  mere  feel- 
ing of  injustice,  which  sweeps  over  us  under  the  exten- 
sive condemnation  pronounced  upon  us,  is  equiv^alent  to 
flinging  back  upon  the  divine  Being  who  made  us  the 
accusation  of  himself  bearing  false  witness.  We  have  no 
purpose  whatever  of  calling  God,  our  heavenly  Father, 
a  liar.  These  swift  estimates  strike  us  as  offensive  and 
rash,  in  despite  of  inspiration.  They  do  certainly,  so 
we  insist,  overrate  the  wickedness  of  our  follies  and  im- 
perfections. They  attach  too  much  importance  to  our 
mere  harmless  fretting  under  heav^enly  restraints.  They 
inject  an  unmerited  malignity  of  guilt  into  simple  petu- 
lance and  caprice  of  will,  which  has  no  intention  of  pos- 
itive rebellion. 

It  is  probable  that  many  of  us  make  these  two  mis- 


SIN   CLEANSED   BY  BLOOD.  I97 

Actual  computation.  "  Sin,"  but  not  '*  sins." 

takes  at  once  :  We  do  not  attempt  to  add  up  the  numbers 
of  our  actual  transgressions  ;  and  we  fail  to  bear  in 
mind  that  non-performance  of  the  right  is  the  same  as  the 
doing  of  real  wrong.  So  we  naturally  satisfy  ourselves 
with  conclusions  that  do  not  come  up  to  the  standard 
of  perfectness  which  the  judgment  of  infinite  purity  de- 
mands. God  makes  registers  which  we  say  are  not  true. 
*'  Every  way  of  a  man  is  right  in  his  own  eyes  :  but  the 
Lord  pondereth  the  hearts." 

It  becomes  evident  that  all  the  sacred  writers  have  an- 
other criterion  than  ours,  by  which  they  more  accurately 
measure  the  exact  heinousness  of  human  conduct  in  the 
sight  of  a  holy  God.  The  fear  arises,  in  every  exhibi- 
tion of  men's  responsibility  for  behavior,  that  many  a 
one  will  be  found  who  is  attempting  to  pass  all  particu- 
lars by,  and  take  a  SAveet  self-congratulation  in  confess- 
ing generals.  He  will  acknowledge  he  is  a  sinner,  per- 
haps. Everybody  is.  He  supposes  he  may  have  bro- 
ken the  Decalogue.  But  you  will  ask  in  vain  for  him 
to  mention  the  commandment.  Sometimes  one  will  ad- 
mit that  he  is  exposed  to  the  curse  of  the  law.  At  the 
same  moment,  however,  he  is  prepared  to  make  a  stand 
of  denial  upon  each  precept  in  turn.  Such  a  man  actu- 
ally appears  sincere.  He  imagines  it  is  just  fair  to  him 
to  draw  a  distinction.  He  may  have  committed  sin^  but 
no  sins.  He  is  defiled,  but  not  exactly  blamev/orthy. 
He  feels  pain  and  weakness,  and  so  owns  he  has  caught 
a  calamity  of  wickedness,  as  even  the  healthiest  of  men 
possibly  might  catch  an  infectious  disease.     But  he  in- 


198  SIN   CLEANSED   BY   BLOOD. 

Guilt  massing  itself.  Reminiscences. 

sists  that  he  has  lived  conscientiously,  and  has  never 
been  a  violent  transgressor.  He  merits  less  censure, 
having  sinned,  as  it  were,  only  by  accident. 

Then,  further,  it  seems  clear  that  before  we  can  set- 
tle the  moral  state  of  any  given  individual,  we  shall  be 
compelled  to  take  into  consideration  his  lack  of  positive 
obedience  and  service,  as  it  ought  to  be  registered  by 
the  light  and  the  chances  he  has  received.  And  with 
most  of  us,  dwelling  under  the  full  blaze  of  the  gospel, 
the  case  may  eventually  go  hard.  In  nothing  else  does 
sin  display  its  Satanic  origin  and  nature  so  evidently  as 
in  its  insidious  power  of  massing  itself  in  and  upon  a 
human  soul,  without  that  soul's  becoming  painfully  or 
alarmingly  conscious  of  its  baleful  presence.  This  is 
what  constitutes  the  peculiar  ''deceitfulness"  of  trans- 
gression, concerning  which  we  are  so  frequently  admon- 
ished in  the  Scriptures.  And  this  is  what  blinds  the 
eyes  most  of  all  against  the  discovery  that  doing  noth- 
ing right  is  just  the  same  as  doing  something  wrong. 
"Therefore  to  him  that  knoweth  to  do  good,  and  doeth 
it  not,  to  him  it  is  sin." 

I  honestly  and  sorrowfully  believe  there  is  no  person 
in  any  intelligent  community,  informed  enough  to  un- 
derstand how  searchingly  the  law  of  God  lays  hold  upon 
motives  and  purposes,  and  all  the  hidden  movements  of 
the  mind,  who  cannot  even  now  recall  the  day  and  the 
hour  when  his  will  crossed  God's  will  in  an  actual  expe- 
rience of  speech  or  of  deed,  and  he  determined  to  have 
his  own  way — did  have  it — and  knows  now,  this  very 


SIN   CLEANSED   BY  BLOOD.  I99 

Old  wrongs.  Negative  sins. 

moment,  that  in  that  decision  and  behavior  he  deliber- 
ately sinned  against  the  God  of  heaven. 

To  many  of  us  there  are  faces  on  earth,  living  some- 
where, near  or  distant,  which  we  desire  never  to  behold 
again  ;  faces,  for  example,  which  seen  in  our  business 
haunts  or  social  circles,  and  likely  to  claim  old  acquaint- 
ance with  us,  would  mantle  our  cheeks  with  shame. 
There  are  tongues,  which  could  speak  in  some  ears  only 
a  few  words  of  recollection  and  recall,  that  we  would 
give  the  world  rather  than  have  v/hispered  in  the  pres- 
ence of  those  friends  who  respect  us  and  trust  us  to- 
day. Do  you  suppose  King  David  w^as  the  only  man 
that  ever  lived  who  could  pray,  or  has  prayed,  in  an 
abashed  wonder  at  his  own  disclosed  history  :  *' Remem- 
ber not  the  sins  of  my  youth,  nor  my  transgressions  : 
according  to  thy  mercy  remember  thou  me,  for  thy  good- 
ness' sake,  O  Lord  ? " 

Alas  for  our  neglects  of  duty — our  first  oath,  our  fool- 
ish dissipation,  our  bad  book  read,  our  filthy  story  told, 
our  Sabbath  broken,  our  parents  disobeyed,  our  preva- 
rication under  the  sharp  question  of  an  employer,  our 
evil  companionship  !  And  in  our  riper  years — alas  for 
our  impulsive  yielding  to  dishonesty,  our  malicious 
insinuation  undermining  the  fair  fame  of  another,  our 
acted  lie  to  keep  up  appearances,  our  permitted  misun- 
derstanding from  which  came  gain  to  our  greed,  our 
quarrels  with  rivals  in  trade  or  competitors  in  profes- 
sion, our  ungenerous  suspicion  that  rejected  old  trust, 
our  indignation  at  fraternal  rebukes  !     Alas  for  our  wil- 


2CX)  SIN  CLEANSED  BY  BLOOD. 

Our  ownership  in  sin.  The  sea-shell. 

ful  outbreaks  of  temper,  our  miserable  jealousies  in  so- 
ciety, our  chicaneries  in  politics,  our  covetings  of  gain, 
our  whisperings  of  detraction,  our  word  broken  when  it 
should  have  been  kept,  our  word  given  when  it  should 
have  been  withheld,  our  wounding  speeches  to  the  weak 
and  dependent,  our  anger  at  the  beggars,  our  hardness 
on  the  poor,  our  pride,  always  too  unwilling  to  explain 
or  retract  old  injustice  or  heal  estrangement!  Who  is 
clear  in  this  ? 

All  of  these  may  not  be  recognized  by  the  same  per- 
son, but  each  will  remember  his  ov.m.  And  the  uncom- 
fortable pain  they  bring  arises  in  no  degree  against  the 
one  who  suggests  them,  for  they  do  not  originate  with 
him  ;  they  are  ours,  and  ours  alone. 

You  sometimes  enter  a  cabinet  of  curiosities,  and  the 
attendant  proffers  you  a  large,  beautiful  shell.  He  tells 
you  that,  if  you  put  it  to  your  ear,  you  can  hear  the 
moaning  of  the  ocean.  It  amuses  you  to  make  the  trial  ; 
sure  enough,  you  seem  listening  to  a  roar  of  waves  upon 
the  rocks.  Your  curiosity,  however,  is  most  arrested  by 
the  fact  that  you  hear  the  sound  only  when  you  grasp 
the  shell  yourself.  Perhaps  a  child  would  imagine  that 
it  holds  in  its  recesses  memories  of  the  beach  it  came 
from.  But  you  inquire,  and  are  now  interested  to  be 
informed  that  the  noise  comes  not  out  of  any  peculiar- 
ity in  the  shell,  but  only  from  the  vibration  of  your  ov*^n 
lingers  around  on  the  outside  of  the  hollow  convolu- 
tions, as  the  tension  of  the  muscles  grows  tremulous 
under  the  pressure.     So  really,  what  you  hear  is  not  the 


SIN   CLEANSED   BY   BLOOD.  201 

The  sound  In  one's  ears.  The  "  life-giver." 

ocean  at  all,  but  only  the  beat  and  pulse  of  your  own 
busy  life. 

Bear  away  with  you  a  profitable  thought  from  this. 
You  hold  up  God's  word  close  to  your  ear  ;  somebody 
tells  you  it  is  full  of  w^arning;  you  perceive  the  dull 
roar  of  retribution  yourself ;  you  grow  pettish  if  another 
man  presses  it  harder.  But  all  this  v/hile  you  hear  the 
moaning  of  a  solemn  admonition  more  clearly  if  you 
are  alone.  For  what  you  hear  is  just  your  own  heart 
growing  prophetic  of  evil,  when  it  listens  to  the  voice 
of  your  own  life  telling  its  record  to  your  soul.  ^'  The 
wicked  man  travaileth  with  pain  all  his  days,  and  the 
number  of  years  is  hidden  to  the  oppressor.  A  dread- 
ful sound  is  in  his  ears  :  in  prosperity  the  destroyer  shall 
come  upon  him." 

Now  then,  w^hat  the  apostle  John  says  is  that  there  is 
no  use  in  trying  to  deny  such  an  impeachment.  God 
charges  that  we  are  rebellious  sinners,  and  our  hearts 
accept  the  sense  of  guilt.  If  we  refuse  to  admit  it,  we 
are  liars  ourselves,  and  are  attempting  to  show  that  God 
is  also.  **  But  if  we  walk  in  the  light,  as  he  is  in  the 
light,  we  have  fellowship  one  with  another,  and  the 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ  his  Son  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin." 

Scholars  tell  us  that  throughout  the  Peshito  Syriac 
version  of  the  Scriptures,  deemed  among  the  most  prim- 
itive and  intelligent,  **  salvation"  is  in  all  cases  rendered 
*'life  ;  "  the  saved  are  called  the  living  or  the  alive  ;  the 
Saviour  bears  the  name  of  Mahyono^  or  the  life-giver. 
In  all  this  there  is  a  proper  recognition  of  our  owing 


202  SIN   CLEANSED   BY   BLOOD. 

McCheyne's  remark.  Carey's  epitaph. 

everything  to  Jesus  Christ,  our  surety.  We  are  dead  in 
trespasses  and  in  sins,  but  our  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in 
God.  ''To  be  awakened,"  wisely  said  McCheyne,  ''we 
need  to  know  our  own  hearts  ;  to  be  saved,  we  need  to 
know  the  heart  of  Jesus  Christ." 

Christ  is,  therefore,  a  perfect  Saviour.  Our  relief  is 
not  found  in  denying  sin,  but  in  accepting  him  as  our 
redeemer  from  it.  If  we  plead  not  guilty,  we  do  not  tell 
the  truth.  "  And  if  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  advocate 
Vv^ith  the  Father,  Jesus  Christ  the  righteous  :  and  he  is 
the  propitiation  for  our  sins  :  and  not  for  ours  only,  but 
also  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world."  "  If  we  confess  our 
sins,  he  is  faithful  and  just  to  forgive  us  our  sins,  and 
to  cleanse  us  from  all  unrighteousness." 

It  was  the  dying  request  of  William  Carey,  that  if  a 
poor  sinful  creature  should  merit  any  word  to  be  said  at 
his  funeral,  it  should  be  merely  to  declare  that  upon  his 
tombstone  he  wanted  this  one  verse  for  an  epitaph  : 

"A  wretched,  poor,  and  helpless  worm. 
On  thy  kind  arms  I  fall ; 
My  Lord,  my  life,  my  sacrifice, 
My  Saviour,  and  my  all ! " 


XVIII. 
LOVE   AS   A   FORCE. 

We  love  him,  because  he  first  loved  us.— i  John  4 :  19. 

John,  the  beloved  disciple,  soon  shows  himself  the 
loving  apostle.  Specially,  in  that  remembered  passage 
of  his  first  epistle,  near  the  beginning  of  the  fourth 
chapter,  he  pictures  a  range  of  experience  extending 
from  God  to  man  and  from  man  to  his  fellow-man,  very- 
rare  and  beautiful,  and  full  of  practical  suggestion  to  all 
who  will  study  it.  He  shows  us  love  as  an  embodiment 
in  God,  love  as  a  manifestation  by  God,  and  love  as  a 
force  from  God. 

I.  As  an  embodiment,  he  puts  it  thus  :  *'God  is  love." 
He  tells  us,  in  the  outset,  that  the  Creator  had  cher- 
ished an  eternaj  affection  and  solicitude  for  fallen  man. 
The  next  step  leads  him  to  say  that  God  had  plainly  ex- 
hibited his  interest  by  his  careful  providences.  Then  he 
passes  swiftly  and  enthusiastically  on  in  a  glowing  de- 
scription of  the  love.  Then  he  begins  to  laud  it ;  then 
he  vindicates  God's  claims  for  obedience  on  account  of 
it.  Thus  advancing  constantly,  more  and  more  fully 
under  sway  of  his  theme,  as  he  refreshes  his  own  soul 
with  the  delights  of  it,  he  at  last  reaches  the  climax, 
and  in  one  burst  of  ascription,  whose  very  simplicity 


204  LOVE  AS   A  FORCE. 


"  God  is  love."  Natural  religion. 

constitutes  its  grandeur,  he  declares,  "God  is  love." 
A  sense  of  obligation  is  instantly  asserted  :  **  Beloved, 
let  us  love  one  another  :  for  love  is  of  God  ;  and  every 
one  that  loveth,  is  born  of  God,  and  knoweth  God.  He 
that  loveth  not,  knoweth  not  God  ;  for  God  is  love." 

Now  we  are  not  to  suppose  he  intended  to  give  here 
an  exact  definition  of  the  Supreme  Being.  The  al- 
mighty Creator  is  a  person,  not  an  attribute.  John  only 
takes  what  he  insists  to  be  the  chief  characteristic  of  the 
Deity,  and  by  a  bold  stroke  of  rhetoric  affirms  that  he  is 
its  perfection  and  embodiment  at  the  highest. 

It  is  vitally  necessary  to  the  success  of  any  system  of 
belief  that  men  shall  understand  the  character  of  the 
God  who  demands  worship  and  service  under  it.  Man 
is  a  devotional  being,  and  he  will  certainly  clamor  for 
some  religion  w^ith  all  the  wistful  voices  of  his  entire 
nature.  What  that  religion  will  be  depends  upon  one 
primary  conception  in  his  mind  ;  namely,  the  idea  he 
has  of  the  supreme  Jove  or  Jehovah  at  the  centre  and 
head  of  it.  This  it  is  which  gives  form  to  all  his  rea- 
sonings, as  well  as  a  reason  for  all  his  forms.  Let  a  na- 
tion be  instructed  to  think  of  God  as  a  being  of  war, 
and  little  by  little  their  worship  is  sure  to  become  mar- 
tial, and  the  feelings  of  their  hearts  military.  Battle- 
songs  will  be  the  anthems  on  the  holy-(Jays,  cries  for 
vengeful  success  will  be  the  prayers,  and  heroic  soldiers 
will  figure  as  demi-gods.  Not  unlikely  human  victims 
will  smoke  upon  the  altars,  and  bloody  trophies  will  be 
hung  upon  the  walls  of  the  temples.     Men  always  be- 


LOVE  AS  A  FORCE.  205 


The  idea  of  God.  Projection  of  attributes. 

come  like  that  which  they  willingly  worship.  This  one 
idea  of  God  controls  the  entire  race,  giving  shape  to 
every  form  of  development. 

*' Think  of  Buddha,"  say  the  Chinese  priests,  *'and 
you  will  grov7  to  resemble  Buddha."  So  they  picture 
heaven  as  consisting  of  a  series  of  tremendous  periods 
of  time,  divided  according  to  the  portions  of  Buddha's 
person.  So  many  years  are  to  be  passed  in  thinking  of 
Buddha's  feet ;  so  many  years  in  thinking  of  Buddha's 
knees  ;  so  many  years  in  thinking  of  Buddha's  waist, 
and  of  his  shoulders,  and  of  his  chin,  and  so  on.  Their 
idea  of  God  fashions  the  whole  religion  they  cherish  and 
the  devotional  life  they  live. 

Now,  we  must  remember  that  the  Bible  teaches  us  to 
reverse  the  usual  process  by  which  unregenerate  men 
seek  to  reach  the  idea  of  the  Supreme  Being.  The  so- 
called  philosophers  and  ''advanced  thinkers"  of  this 
world  are  wont  to  construct  their  own  deities.  They  pro- 
ject the  attributes  of  their  common  nature  into  infinity, 
and  then  group  them  together,  calling  that  Jove  or  Jeho- 
vah, as  it  pleases  themselves.  That  is  to  say,  they  con- 
ceive power,  which  in  a  measure  human  beings  possess, 
to  become  unlimited  ;  that  makes  omnipotence.  Then 
they  conceive  wisdom,  which  sages  exhibit,  to  advance 
into  omniscience.  So  they  gather  the  qualities  of  the 
supremely  best  human  nature,  augment  them  and  refine 
them  and  exalt  them  until  they  may  suddenly  be  hur- 
ried into  personality — and  the  personage  is  God.  Un- 
fortunately, the  result  of  this  process  is  unequal  to  the 


206  LOVE  AS  A  FORCE. 

"  An  Ethiop's  god."  God's  revelation  of  himself. 

need  of  one's  soul,  because  it  is  the  simple  creation  of 
one's  soul ;  the  fountain  cannot  rise  higher  than  the 
spring.  A  conception  thus  originated  partakes  of  the 
entire  man  that  starts  it,  and  so  universally  the  produc- 
tions will  vary  as  the  men  do. 

"An  Ethiop's  god  hath  Ethiop's  lips. 
Black  cheek,  and  woolly  hair  ; 
But  the  Grecian  god  hath  a  Grecian  face. 
As  keen-eyed  and  as  fair." 

The  New  Testament  shows  us  that  God  prefers  to 
draw  his  own  picture  upon  the  human  imagination,  and 
addresses  our  faith  by  the  disclosure  of  himself  sover- 
eignly in  the  person  of  Jesus  Christ.  So  far  back  as  in 
his  gospel,  this  same  evangelist  John  had  written  :  *'  No 
man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time  ;  the  only-begotten  Son, 
which  is  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  he  hath  declared 
him."  Here,  in  his  epistle,  he  amplifies  and  reiterates 
the  thought ;  showing  that  our  entire  notion  of  the 
Supreme  Being  comes  from  what  he  has  himself  re- 
vealed to  us  from  on  high  :  **  No  man  hath  seen  God  at 
any  time.  If  we  love  one  another,  God  dwelleth  in  us, 
and  his  love  is  perfected  in  us.  Hereby  know  we  that 
we  dvv^ell  in  him,  and  he  in  us,  because  he  hath  given  us 
of  his  Spirit.  And  we  have  seen,  and  do  tqstify,  that  the 
Father  sent  the  Son  to  be  the  Saviour  of  the  world." 

Let  it  be  taken  for  granted  that  God  is  love  ;  that  is, 
that  he  is  actuated  by  love,  his  character  is  based  on 
love,  his  law  is  a  law  of  love,  his  dealings  are  in  the 


LOVE  AS  A   FORCE.  20/ 


The  true  religion. 


A  religion  of  love. 


highest  sense  the  demonstrations  of  love,  his  leanings 
toward  our  fallen  race  are  the  yearnings  of  love.  Then 
let  it  be  understood  that  love  becomes  the  permanent 
and  reigning  principle  of  our  being  ;  and  we  shall  in- 
stantly understand  the  meaning  of  the  verse  :  ''Whoso- 
ever shall  confess  that  Jesus  is  the  Son  of  God,  God 
dwelleth  in  him,  and  he  in  God." 

Suppose,  then,  there  should  be  openly  introduced  a 
religion  of  gentleness  and  good-will,  fixed  unmistakably 
before  all  by  the  plain  and  characteristic  element  in  it 
announced  in  the  statement,  *'  God  is  love."  This  would 
give  to  men  love  as  an  active  principle  of  life.  A  God 
of  love  must  be  worshipped  with  love.  Around  him  our 
sympathies  would  have  to  be  grouped,  so  that  whenever 
our  veneration  was  to  find  utterance,  or  our  devotion 
was  to  choose  a  ceremony,  it  necessarily  would  exhibit 
the  presence  of  love  as  the  prevailing  spirit,  and  would 
show  love  in  all  its  ritual  forms. 

That  is  to  say,  take  this  old  faith  of  ours,  *'  the  faith 
once  delivered  to  the  saints,"  as  an  example  of  what  a 
religion  must  be.  It  is  a  religion  of  pure  love  ;  for  its 
Founder  said  explicitly  :  '*  The  first  of  all  the  command- 
ments is.  Hear,  O  Israel ;  The  Lord  our  God  is  one 
Lord  :  and  thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all 
thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy  mind, 
and  with  all  thy  strength.  This  is  the  first  command- 
ment. And  the  second  is  like,  namely  this.  Thou  shalt 
love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself.  There  is  none  other  com- 
mandment greater  than  these." 


208  LOVE  AS   A   FORCE. 

Love  manifested.  The  life  of  Jesus. 

2.  Next  to  this  consideration  of  love  as  an  embodi- 
ment in  God,  the  apostle  presents  love  as  a  manifesta- 
tion by  God  :  **  In  this  was  manifested  the  love  of  God 
toward  us,  because  that  God  sent  his  only-begotten  Son 
into  the  world,  that  we  might  live  through  him.  Here- 
in is  love,  not  that  we  loved  God,  but  that  he  loved  us, 
and  sent  his  Son  to  be  the  propitiation  for  our  sins." 

There  cannot  be  much  advantage  in  pushing  bright 
historic  illustrations  as  pictures  of  the  supreme,  wonder- 
ful love  of  God  the  creator  for  his  creatures  here  on  the 
earth.  Only  mothers  can  understand  the  feeling  of 
Mary  when  Jesus  Christ  moaned  on  the  cross  in  the  ma- 
jestic agony  of  his  sufferings  in  darkness.  And  not 
even  mothers  can  understand  the  feelings  of  God  when 
he  gave  this  beloved  and  only-begotten  Son  of  his  unto 
contumely  and  shame  of  crucifixion.  Nor  are  Christ's 
feelings  within  reach  of  mere  rhetorical  exhibition  by  a 
story.  When  the  spear  pierced  his  heart  there  was  only 
blood  and  water  that  came  forth.  But  the  chief  stream 
within  Jesus'  heart  was  that  of  inexhaustible  love ;  and 
that  had  been  the  current  down  which  had  floated  the 
argosies  of  blessing  for  bewildered  men  for  vast  ages 
since  the  pestilence  of  sin  had  fallen. 

We  must  read  tlie  life  of  Jesus  Christ  as  the  mere 
unfolding  of  this  love.  There  is  no  explanation  of 
Bethany  tears  outside  of  it.  He  might  have  taught  a 
Samaritan  woman  professionally,  like  any  other  rabbi 
upon  the  road  ;  but  he  never  would  have  **sat  thus"  on 
the  well,  unless  he  had  loved  her  soul  and  longed  to 


LOVE  AS   A   FORCE.  209 


"He  first  loved  us."  Not  for  ourselves. 

save  it  by  the  truth.  Simon  the  Cyrenian  would  have 
said  he  was  uplifting  an  unknown  malefactor's  cross,  as 
he  umvillingly  came  in  behind  Jesus  and  raised  the  tim- 
ber on  his  shoulder.  But  what  he  v>ras  doing  really  was 
this — he  was  succoring  eternal  Love  bearing  a  burden 
which  for  the  moment  proved  too  much  for  its  physical 
embodiment.  Peter  saw  Love  walking  upon  the  water  ; 
John  the  Baptist  pointed  out  Love  on  the  shore  of  the 
Jordan  ;  Mary  Magdalene  spoke  to  Love  on  the  excited 
morning  of  the  resurrection  ;  Judas  kissed  Love  when 
he  swung  the  lantern  before  the  face  of  Jesus  ;  Love  had 
been  kneeling  under  the  old  olives,  and  had  left  drops 
of  blood-sweat  on  the  grass.  A  whole  biograph)^  there 
is,  which  cannot  be  read  at  all,  unless  read  as  an  unfold- 
ing of  the  love  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ  for  men. 

And  all  our  love  simply  grows  out  of  his  :  **We  love 
him  because  he  first  loved  us."  But  why  did  he  first 
love  us?  There  was  nothing  in  fallen  man  to  attract 
admiration.  We  love  what  is  lovely ;  we  believe  God 
does  the  same.  But  we  are  all  in  ruins.  Jonathan 
loved  David  because  he  was  so  brave  and  noble,  as  he 
told  about  Goliath. 

Nor  was  this  love  of  God  drawn  out  toward  men  by 
any  reason  of  promise  for  the  future.  Pharoah's  daugh- 
ter heard  the  cry  of  a  babe  in  the  bulrushes  ;  she  whis- 
pered contemptuously  of  it,  *'  It  is  only  one  of  the  He- 
brews' children  ! "  But  when  the  attendant  stooped 
down  to  pick  it  up,  she  saw  it  was  a  ''goodly  child,"  and 
something  might  be  made  of  it  if  only  she  would  give  it 


2IO  LOVE  AS  A  FORCE. 

Not  that  we  loved  him.  A  driving  energy. 


a  little  fairer  chance.  But  we  never  had  any  hope  of 
betterment  by  ourselves. 

Nor  even  was  this  divine  love  drawn  out  toward  us 
by  any  affection  that  we  still  retained  for  him.  He 
knows  how  we  naturally  feel  toward  him.  ^'  The  carnal 
mind  is  enmity  against  God."  The  love  we  live  upon 
is  the  sovereign,  unconstrained  gift  of  our  God.  ^^  For 
when  we  were  yet  without  strength,  in  due  time  Christ 
died  for  the  ungodly.  For  scarcely  for  a  righteous  man 
Vv'ill  one  die  ;  yet  peradventure  for  a  good  man  some 
would  even  dare  to  die.  But  God  commendeth  his  love 
towards  us,  in  that,  while  we  were  yet  sinners,  Christ 
died  for  us." 

3.  This  leads  us  directly  on  to  the  third  point  made 
by  the  apostle  :  he  now  considers  love  as  a  force  from 
God.  The  reach  of  his  thought  grows  extensive  ;  it  de- 
scends from  heaven  to  earth.  Obligation  comes  after 
such  supreme  advantage  :  "  Beloved,  if  God  so  loved  us, 
we  ought  also  to  love  one  another." 

Affection  is  ^  force — in  itself  inherently  a  driving  en- 
ergy, an  elementary  power  of  human  nature  which  as- 
serts itself  when  unhindered,  as  gravitation  does,  or 
magnetism,  or  pure  sunshine.  It  is  never  to  be  forgot- 
ten that  souls  yield  to  its  influence  all  the  more  surely, 
and  all  the  more  extensively,  because  they  yield  uncon- 
sciously. Herein  lies  our  hope  of  success  in  winning 
souls. 

Once  I  knew  a  working  man,  a  potter  by  business, 
who  had  one  small  invalid  child  at  home.     He  wrought 


LOVE  AS  A  FORCE.  211 

Story  of  a  potter.  .  -    .  =--  Quiet  fellowship. 

at  his  trade  with  exemplary  fidelity,  being  always  in  the 
shop  with  the  opening  of  day.  He  managed,  however, 
to  bear  each  evening  to  the  bedside  of  the  ''wee  lad,"  as 
he  called  him,  a  flower,  or  a  bit  of  ribbon,  a  fragment 
of  crimson  glass,  indeed  anything  that  would  lie  out  on 
the  white  counterpane,  and  give  a  color  in  the  room. 
He  was  a  quiet  unsentimental  Scotchmxan  ;  but  never 
went  he  home  at  nightfall  without  some  toy  or  trinket, 
showing  he  had  remembered  the  wan  face  that  lit  up  so 
when  he  came  in.  I  presume  he  never  said  to  a  living 
soul  that  he  loved  that  sick  boy  so  much.  Still  he 
went  on  patiently  loving  him.  And  by  and  by  he 
moved  that  whole  shop  into  positively  real  but  un- 
conscious fellowship  with  him.  The  workmen  made 
curious  little  jars  and  teacups  upon  their  wheels,  and 
painted  diminutive  pictures  down  the  sides  before  they 
stuck  them  in  corners  of  the  kiln  at  burning  time.  One 
brought  some  fruit  in  the  bulge  of  his  apron,  and  an- 
other some  engravings  in  a  rude  scrap-book.  Not  one 
of  them  all  whispered  a  word,  for  this  solemn  thing  was 
not  to  be  talked  about.  They  put  them  in  the  old 
man's  hat,  where  he  found  them  ;  so  he  understood  all 
about  it.  And  I  tell  you  seriously,  that  entire  pottery 
fuii  of  men,  of  rather  coarse  fibre  by  nature,  grew  quiet 
as  the  months  drifted,  becoming  gentle  and  kind,  and 
some  of  the  ungoverned  ones  stopped  swearing,  as  the 
w^eary  look  on  their  patient  fellow-worker's  face  told 
them  beyond  any  mistake  that  the  inevitable  shadow 
was  drawing  nearer.     Every  day  now  somebody  did  a 


212  LOVE  AS  A  FORCE. 

A  child's  funeral.  A  loyal  affection. 

piece  of  his  work  for  him,  and  put  it  up  on  the  sanded 
plank  to  dry ;  thus  he  could  come  later  and  go  earlier. 
So,  when  the  bell  tolled,  and  the  little  coffin  came  out 
of  the  door  of  the  lowly  house,  right  around  the  corner 
out  of  sight,  there  stood  a  hundred  stalwart  working- 
men  from  the  pottery  with  their  clean  clothes  on,  most 
of  whom  gave  a  half-day  of  time  for  the  privilege  of  tak- 
ing oif  their  hats  to  the  simple  procession,  filing  in  be- 
hind it,  and  following  across  the  village  green  to  its 
grave  that  small  burden  of  a  child,  which  probably  not 
one  of  them  had  ever  seen  with  his  own  eyes. 

You  all  understand  this  :  they  loved  him  because  some- 
body had  loved  him.  Oh  !  if  just  an  earthly  affection 
like  this  can  win  others  into  sharing  it,  what  is  there 
which  cannot  be  done  with  an  affection  that  is  heav- 
enly ?  If  men  love  Christ  with  all  their  hearts,  as  that 
Scotchman  loved  his  boy,  the  very  love  will  cany  heart 
after  heart  in  its  train.  And  so  here  is  an  instrument 
of  usefulness  within  the  reach  of  every  Christian  who 
will  employ  it. 

Some  believers  think  they  cannot  speak  felicitously, 
nor  pray  fluently,  in  public  ;  but  what  man  lives  that 
cannot  love  the  cause,  and  love  men,  and  love  children, 
and  love  Christ  loyally,  until  an  entire  circle  of  men 
and  women  he  touches  with  his  influence  shall  love  him 
whom  unseen  we  love  ;  in  whom,  though  now  we  see 
him  not,  yet  believing,  we  rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable 
and  full  of  glory  ! 

So  I  say  again,  therein  lies  the  secret  of  all  success. 


LOVE   AS   A  FORCE.  213 

Somebody  cares.  Love  wins  love. 

You  need  not  go  far  for  illustration.  A  teacher  brought 
one  of  her  Bible  class  to  me  ;  she  tried  to  conceal  her 
anxiety  and  restrain  her  emotion.  But  the  boy  caught 
a  glimpse  of  the  real  tears  which  she  could  not  keep 
back  from  her  eyes  ;  and  then  he  listened.  Once  an 
active  merchant  told  me  a  lamentable  tale  of  his  book- 
keeper ;  he  desired  me  to  interpose  and  save  the  young 
man  from  ruin.  But  never  should  I  have  reached  the 
heart  of  the  clerk  if  I  had  not  happened  to  say  his  em- 
ployer's voice  faltered  when  he  spoke  of  him  ;  for  so  he 
knew  his  master  cared  for  his  good.  Once  I  mentioned 
to  a  clergyman  that  perhaps  I  could  help  a  disabled 
shoemaker  with  some  little  work,  if  he  would  come  and 
see  me  soon.  And  next  v/eek  I  learned  that  this  faith- 
ful friend,  a  city  missionary,  walked  six  cold  miles  that 
winter  evening  to  tell  the  cobbler  his  good  news  before 
the  midnight.  And  if  ever  I  straitened  myself  to  get 
a  place  for  a  man,  I  did  then  for  him.  For  a  man  loved 
him,  and  then  so  did  I. 

Hence  the  whole  truth  is  in  the  statement  :  we  love 
Christ  because  he  loved  us  first.  Then  the  love  of  Christ 
constrains  us  to  seek  others  and  lead  them  to  love  him  ; 
and  we  teach  them  to  love  a  Saviour  they  never  saw  by 
showing  them  how  much  we  love  him.  Thus  we  uncon- 
sciously grow  Christ-like  ourselves,  for  his  Spirit  dwells 
within  us.  We  learn  to  love  human  beings  because 
Christ  loved  the  lost  race  they  belong  to.  And  then 
men,  seeing  we  love  them,  love  us  and  our  work.  And 
so  the  way  is  wide  open  to  win  them  to  God. 


XIX. 

ALPHA  AND   OMEGA. 

I  AM  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  beginning  and  the  ending,  saith 
THE  Lord,  which  is,  and  which  was,  and  which  is  to  come, 
THE  A\.U\GU1:y .—Revelation  i  :  8. 

Blue,  dim,  and  solitary,  in  the  wide  offing,  as  one 
sails  over  the  ^Egean  Sea,  rises  the  Isle  of  Patmos  sud- 
denly, out  in  the  distance.  There  is  no  reason  specially 
for  a  visit.     Little  or  nothing  remains  to  be  seen  ashore. 

But  the  Christian  tourist  sits  thoughtfully  on  the  deck, 
and  recalls  from  his  familiar  reading  that  here  John,  the 
last  of  the  apostolic  band,  and  the  loneliest,  was  once 
worshiping,  and  heard  a  trumpet ;  he  looked,  and  saw 
a  vision  ;  he  listened,  and  received  an  encouragement ; 
he  was  obedient,  and  wrote  the  Apocalypse. 

I.  What  did  the  trumpet  articulate  ? 

For  it  uttered  words.  Its  blast  rang  out  in  terms  and 
tones  of  human  speech.  On  that  solemn  Sunday  morn- 
ing, while  this  spiritually-minded  man  was  in  the  act 
of  communion  with  God,  the  heavens  overhead  became 
vocal.     He  tells  the  story  in  his  own  simple  way  : 

*'  I  was  in  the  Spirit  on  the  Lord's  day,  and  heard 
behind  me  a  great  voice,  as  of  a  trumpet,  saying,  I  am 
Alpha  and  Omega,  the  first  and  the  last :  the  beginning 


ALPHA  AND   OMEGA.  21$ 

A  whirling  wheel.  God  changes  not. 

and  the  ending,  saith  the  Lord,  which  is,  and  which  was, 
and  which  is  to  come,  the  Almighty." 

There  is,  so  scientific  people  tell  us,  one  point,  even 
in  a  whirling  wheel,  which  is  at  rest.  One  line  of  atoms 
at  the  axis,  around  which  all  the  others  revolve,  is  still. 
When  we  conceive  of  providence,  intricate  and  confused 
as  it  is,  well  typed  by  the  prophet  as  "  a  wheel  in  the 
middle  of  a  wheel,"  we  are  always  to  remember  that  God 
himself  is  sitting  unmoved  at  the  centre  of  the  universe, 
the  Father  of  lights,  from  whom  cometh  down  every  good 
and  every  perfect  gift,  and  with  whom  there  is  no  vari- 
ableness, neither  shadow  of  turning.  And  there  is  re- 
lief and  comfort  in  this. 

Shocked  and  shifted  as  we  are  in  this  life,  our  minds 
become  impressed  with  a  sense  of  insecurity.  We  are 
agitated  with  a  thousand  disquiets.  No  lot  in  the  world 
is  safe.  Affairs  fluctuate.  Individual  experience  flits 
and  plays  with  the  phases  of  the  moon.  Institutions  are 
not  fixed.  Even  the  perpetual  hills  do  bow,  and  the 
eternal  seas  do  change  their  bounds.  Stability  seems 
but  an  empty  fiction  or  a  dream.  Versatilities  mock 
our  expectation ;  vicissitude  is  the  rule  of  earthly  ex- 
istence. 

Over  all  sits  God  calmly.  His  throne  never  moves. 
His  eye  never  sleeps.  His  patience  never  wearies.  He 
wills  and  waits  at  his  own  pleasure.  We  look  up  and 
find  him  watching  ;  we  know  where  to  find  him  always. 
And  the  beauty  and  glory  and  welcome  of  this  thought 
is   centred   in  upon   tlie   one   revelation  that  the  God 


2l6  ALPHA   AND   OMEGA. 

Immanuel.  Pre-existence. 

whom  we  see  is  the  Saviour  whom  we  love  :  "  Jesus 
Christ,  the  same  yesterday,  and  to-day,  and  forever." 

The  idea  of  our  divine  Lord  as  a  person  is  to  many 
minds  exceedingly  indefinite.  He  seems  a  mere  his- 
toric character,  born,  living,  dying,  like  any  other  being 
among  the  generations  of  men.  We  accept  his  deity  as 
a  mysterious  doctrine  of  revelation,  essential,  of  course, 
to  his  office  and  work  ;  but  our  understanding  of  the 
ineffable  meaning  it  bears  is  very  vague  and  irrelevant. 
And  that  strange  life,  which  began  at  the  manger  in 
Bethlehem,  ran  through  some  sorrowful  years  in  Galilee, 
and  then  ended  on  the  cross  at  Jerusalem,  has  no  real 
significance  as  a  mission  of  Immanuel,  *'God  with  us." 
We  hardly  know  how  to  deal  with  it.  Really  the  weak- 
ness of  many  believers  is  owing  to  their  absolute  inabil- 
ity to  make  this  personal  career  of  our  Redeemer  avail- 
able in  their  experience. 

Such  confusion  is  perfectly  natural.  It  is  the  neces- 
sary sequence  of  a  miserable  mistake.  How  childishly 
inadequate  is  the  conception  of  an  infinite  Son  of  God, 
which  limits  him  consciously  or  unconsciously  to  an 
earthly  history  ending  in  a  failure  !  Now  the  Scripture 
insists  that  Jesus'  birth  was  not  his  beginning,  nor  was 
his  death  his  end.  The  thirty-three  years  of  his  human 
existence  bear  almost  no  measure  or  relation  to  the  real 
duration  of  his  life.  He  was  living  for  an  eternity  pre- 
vious to  their  commencing ;  he  is  living  now  in  an  eter- 
nity as  unbroken  and  as  boundless  as  ever.  The  incar- 
nation was  an  incident  in  his  career ;  it  was  only  a  part 


ALPHA   AND    OMEGA.  21/ 

Child's  notion  of  God.  The  Scripture  scene. 

of  his  work  of  redemption,  a  necessary  part,  a  noble 
part,  but  not  the  whole.  His  biography  would  have  to 
be  written  with  an  alphabet,  the  Alpha  of  which  no  hu- 
man voice  ever  repeated,  the  Omega  of  w^hich  no  mor- 
tal tongue  would  know  how  to  speak. 

II.  What  was  the  vision  which  John  saw  ? 

*'I  can  just  remember,"  says  a  theologian  of  the  last 
century,  "  that  when  the  women  first  taught  me  to  say 
my  prayers  to  God,  I  used  to  have  an  idea  of  a  vener- 
able old  man,  of  a  composed  and  benign  countenance, 
with  his  own  hair,  clad  in  a  morning  gown  of  a  grave- 
colored  damask,  sitting  sedately  in  an  elbow-chair." 
Such  conceptions  are  singular  as  a  study  ;  but  are  they 
not  frequent  as  an  experience  ?  Would  it  not  be  to  edi- 
fication if  a  company  of  religious  people  should  com- 
pare together  the  actual  sight  they  seem  to  see  when 
they  close  their  eyes  for  an  act  of  prayer  ?  Scripture 
pictures  of  the  divine  Being,  which  are  not  infrequent, 
have  nothing  of  this  grossness.  There  is  an  unparal- 
leled dignity  and  grace  in  every  attitude  and  gesture 
when  the  presence  of  Jehovah  is  seen.  So  we  expect  a 
picture  of  grandeur  now  in  the  story. 

**  And  I  turned  to  see  the  voice  that  spake  with  me. 
And  being  turned,  I  saw  seven  golden  candlesticks.  And 
in  the  midst  of  the  seven  candlesticks  one  like  unto  the 
Son  of  man,  clothed  with  a  garment  down  to  the  foot, 
and  girt  about  the  paps  with  a  golden  girdle.  His  head 
and  his  hairs  were  white  like  wool,  as  white  as  snow  ; 
and  his  eyes  were  as  a  flame  of  fire  ;  and  his  feet  like 

lO 


2l8  ALPHA   AND    OMEGA. 

The  mysterious  symbols.  Augustine's  vision. 

unto  fine  brass,  as  if  they  burned  in  a  furnace ;  and  his 
voice  as  the  sound  of  many  waters.  And  he  had  in  his 
right  hand  seven  stars ;  and  out  of  his  mouth  went  a 
sharp  two-edged  sword  :  and  his  countenance  was  as 
the  sun  shineth  in  his  strength." 

I  do  not  suppose  there  is  any  use  in  our  trying  thor- 
oughly to  understand  this  spectacle.  It  is  easy  to  point 
out  the  symbols  found  in  the  description.  ''Hairs 
white  like  wool  "  must  signify  vencrableness  ;  "  eyes  as 
a  flame  of  fire"  must  mean  omniscience  ;  the  "two- 
edged  sword"  indicates  justice  ;  the  ''voice  as  the  sound 
of  many  waters"  might  suggest  power  ;  and  the  "coun- 
tenance as  the  sun  shining  in  his  strength  "  certainly  in- 
timates holiness.  Still  I  think  the  scene  loses  rather 
than  gains  by  such  an  analysis.  It  does  not  seem  easy 
to  give  or  to  gain  any  proper  conception  of  God. 

At  the  head  of  one  of  the  chapters  of  "  Daniel  Deron- 
da"  stands  this  motto  :  "The  beginning  of  an  acquain- 
tance, whether  with  persons  or  things,  is  to  get  a  defi- 
nite outline  for  our  ignorance."  It  is  better  that  we 
spend  our  efforts  in  using  what  we  do  know  of  the  al- 
mighty Being  who  made  us,  rather  than  in  exhausting 
ourselves  with  curious  inquiries  after  his  mysteries. 
The  celebrated  surgeon  Morgagni  once  let  fall  his  scal- 
pel in  the  midst  of  a  dissection,  and  exclaimed :  "  Oh, 
that  I  could  simply  love  God  as  well  as  I  know  him  ! " 

In  one  of  the  Continental  galleries  is  an  exquisite 
painting  by  Murillo,  entitled,  "The  Vision  of  Saint 
Augustine."     It  represents  a  dream  of  this  great  father 


ALPHA   AND   OMEGA.  219 

The  mystery  of  God.  John  abashed. 

of  the  church,  narrated  by  himself.  He  tells  us  that 
while  busied  in  writing  his  discourse  upon  the  Trinity, 
he  wandered  along  the  seashore  wrapped  in  meditation. 
Suddenly  he  beheld  a  child,  who,  having  dug  a  hole  in 
the  sand,  appeared  to  be  bringing  water  from  the  sea  to 
fill  it.  Augustine  inquired  what  was  the  object  of  his 
task  ?  He  replied  that  he  intended  to  empty  into  this 
cavity  all  the  waters  of  the  great  deep.  Of  course  the 
philosopher  exclaimed  "  Impossible  ! "  But  the  boy  an- 
swered, ''Not  more  impossible,  surely,  than  for  thee,  O 
Augustine,  to  explain  the  mystery  on  which  thou  art 
meditating  !  "  There  is  a  theme  for  any  chastened  and 
thoughtful  imagination  !  See  that  tall  figure  in  priestly 
robes,  on  the  border  of  the  sea,  looking  pitifully  down 
upon  the  Divine  Child — the  infant  Christ — holding  in 
his  slender  hand  his  scoop  of  shell,  his  ladle,  his  small 
bowl  of  water,  while  he  looks  up  so  wise  with  the  ma- 
jesty of  a  sweet  suggestion  of  rebuke  in  his  gentle  face  ! 

HI.  What  was  the  encouragement  which  John  re- 
ceived ? 

Evidently  he  needed  something  of  the  sort ;  for  his 
attitude  shows  he  was  as  much  abashed  and  frightened 
as  was  Isaiah  when  he  saw  the  Almighty  throned  in  the 
temple.  He  is  frank  in  owning  it:  "And  when  I  saw 
him,  I  fell  at  his  feet  as  dead.  And  he  laid  his  right 
hand  upon  me,  saying  unto  me.  Fear  not ;  I  am  the  first 
and  the  last :  I  am  he  that  liveth,  and  was  dead  ;  and, 
behold,  I  am  alive  for  evermore,  Amen  ;  and  have  the 
keys  of  hell  and  of  death." 


220  ALPHA   AND   OMEGA. 

Christ  always  the  same.  Robert  Hall's  remark. 

Here  is  offered  nothing  more  nor  less  than  what  was 
spoken  at  first  by  the  trumpet.  He  was  to  comfort  him- 
self with  what  had  just  now  alarmed  him.  Jesus  Christ 
was  set  for  the  fall  and  the  rising  again.  The  truth 
which  most  humiliates  the  human  soul  is  the  truth  which 
uplifts  it.  In  his  person  and  offices  Christ  the  Redeem- 
er is  the  same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  forever. 

What  poor  weak  men  want  to  know  more  than  any- 
thing else,  is  that  the  Saviour  w^ho  offers  himself  for 
their  redemption  is  surely  going  to  stand  steadily  true 
in  what  he  engages  to  the  end,  and  beyond  any  conceiv- 
able end  which  mortality  may  bring  to  themselves.  We 
have  a  dim  consciousness  that  we  shall  never  shed  our 
immortality.  We  cannot  get  annihilation  even  by  court- 
ing it.  Some  provision,  therefore,  must  be  made  for  a 
vast  future.  Here  comes  in  Robert  Hall's  grand  re- 
mark :  "We  are  all  contemporaneous  with  God."  But 
feebleness  and  inadequacy  are  our  portion  and  our 
limit.  Our  Saviour  has  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead. 
We  are  petulant  and  perverse  even  under  grace.  His 
goodness  is  infinite,  his  love  knows  no  tempers  of  chilli- 
ness or  estrangement ;  he  has  no  f ramies  of  feeling  ;  his 
attributes  and  offices  never  become  old  or  indis- 
tinct. 

In  all  the  theophanies  of  the  Old  Testament,  as  well 
as  in  all  the  personal  communications  of  the  New,  Jesus 
Christ  appears  exactly  the  same.  The  keenest  of  criti- 
cal eyes  cannot  find  in  him  any  flaw  or  caprice  ;  there 
are  no  inconsistencies  for  us  to  reconcile,  no  imperfec- 


ALPHA  AND   OMEGA.  221 

Chartres  cathedral.  New  Testament  and  Old. 

tions  for  us  to  deplore.  He  was  as  kind  to  Abraham  as 
he  was  to  John.  He  had  as  sincere  a  sympathy  for  Ha- 
gar,  as  she  cast  her  dying  boy  under  a  tree,  as  he  had 
for  the  widow  of  Nain,  w^hen  she  followed  her  dead  boy 
out  on  the  bier.  He  was  as  forbearing  w4th  Moses  as  he 
was  with  Simon  Peter. 

And  this  is  what  unites  the  Old  Testament  and  the 
New  closely  together.  The  one  supplements  and  com- 
pletes the  otlier,  because  Jesus  Christ  in  both  is  the 
same  yesterday,  to-day,  and  forever. 

In  the  ancient  cathedral  of  Chartres  there  may  be 
found  upon  the  five  windows  over  the  south  door  a  suc- 
cinct system  of  theology,  according  to  the  belief  of  the 
thirteenth  century.  The  maiden  of  beautiful  figure, 
who  represents  the  Church  dr  Religion,  occupies  the 
central  place.  Then,  on  one  side,  we  see  Jeremiah  with 
St.  Luke  seated  on  his  shoulders  ;  and,  opposite  this, 
we  discover  Ezekiel  bearing  St.  John,  and  Daniel  bear- 
ing St.  Mark.  This  was  a  way  those  ancient  ecclesias- 
tics had  of  saying  that  the  New  Testament  rested  on  the 
Old.  Prophets  supported  evangelists.  The  predictions 
of  the  one  tallied  with  the  realities  of  the  other. 

IV.  What  was  the  command  which  John  obeyed  ? 

So  he  now  discovered  that  the  vision  and  the  voice 
were  for  others  as  well  as  for  himself  :  *'  Write  the  things 
which  thou  hast  seen,  and  the  things  which  are,  and  the 
things  which  shall  be  hereafter. "  The  whole  Apocalypse 
is  now  before  us.  It  is  enough  here  to  indicate  a  few 
of  the  revelations  it  specially  contains. 


ALrnA   AND   OMEGA. 


The  word  "  eternity,"  Jesus  in  the  Proverbs. 

1.  The  glory  of  the  ahuighty  God  is  without  begin- 
ning and  without  end.  Whether  it  was  meant  or  not, 
the  fact  is  significant  that  the  word  *' eternity"  occurs 
but  once  in  our  English  Bible.  A  solitary  verse  em- 
ploys it  to  speak  of  the  residence  of  Jehovah.  ''For 
thus  saith  the  high  and  lofty  One  that  inhabiteth  eter- 
nity, Vv^iose  name  is  Holy  ;  I  dwell  in  the  high  and  holy 
place,  with  him  also  that  is  of  a  contrite  and  humble 
spirit,  to  revive  the  spirit  of  the  humble,  and  to  revive 
the  heart  of  the  contrite  ones."  Hence,  there  are  tvv^o 
heavens  of  glory  where  God  deigns  to  show  his  splen- 
dor, revealed  by  this  solemn,  wonderful  word — the  puri- 
fied paradise  and  the  purified  heart. 

2.  The  glory  of  Jesus  Christ  is  in  the  presence  of  the 
Father,  and  likewise  without  beginning  and  Avithout 
end.  Where  was  the  Saviour  previous  to  his  incarna- 
tion ?  Perhaps  it  will  give  to  som^e  Bible  readers  a  sur- 
prise to  be  told  that  the  best  answer  to  this  question  is 
given  in  the  unfamiliar  book  of  Proverbs  (chapter  8) : 
**  The  Lord  possessed  me  in  the  beginning  of  his  way, 
before  his  works  of  old.  .  .  .  While  as  yet  he  had  not 
made  the  earth,  nor  the  fields,  nor  the  highest  part  of 
the  dust  of  the  world.  .  .  .  Then  I  w^as  by  him,  as  one 
brought  up  with  him  :  and  I  was  daily  his  delight,  re- 
joicing always  before  him."  If  we  simply  understand 
that  the  Wisdom  of  the  Old  Testament  means  the  same 
as  the  Word  of  the  New — the  divine  Lo^os — then  we 
shall  put  another  verse  of  John  easily  alongside :  "  In 
the  beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the  Word  was  with 


ALPHA   AND    OMEGA.  223 

The  word  "  family."  Forever  with  the  Lord. 

God,  and  the  Word  was  God.     The  same  was  in  the  be- 
ginning with  God." 

3.  The  glory  of  the  saints  is  to  be  with  Jesus  Christ ; 
it  begins  w^ith  the  new  birth,  and  then  is  without  end. 
Here  again  it  is  interesting  to  remark  that  the  word 
**  family  "  occurs  only  once  in  our  New  Testament,  and 
then  it  means  the  household  of  the  saved.  Says  the 
apostle  Paul :  *'  For  this  cause  I  bow  my  knees  unto  the 
Father  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  of  whom  the  whole 
famJly  in  heaven  and  earth  is  named,  that  he  w^ould 
grant  you,  according  to  the  riches  of  his  glory,  to  be 
strengthened  with  might  by  his  Spirit  in  the  inner 
man." 

4.  The  glorified  Saviour  desires  his  friends  to  share 
whatever  glory  he  possesses,  and  that  without  end. 
When  Christ  was  on  the  mountain  transfigured,  he 
caused  that  two  Old  Testament  saints  should  appear 
w^ith  him  in  glory,  in  order  that  the  world  might  know 
where  the  redeemed  were  dwelling  centuries  after  death. 
And  in  the  final  intercession,  the  last  prayer  we  know 
of  his  making,  Jesus  asked  this:  '*  And  now,  O  Father, 
glorify  thou  me  with  thine  own  self,  with  the  glory 
which  I  had  with  thee  before  the  world  was.  .  .  . 
Father,  I  will  that  they  also,  whom  thou  hast  given  me, 
be  with  me  where  I  am  ;  that  they  may  behold  my  glory, 
w^hich  thou  hast  given  me  ;  for  thou  lovedst  me  before 
the  foundation  of  the  world." 


XX. 

THE   MESSAGE   TO   THE   CHURCHES. 

He  that  hath  an  ear,  let  him  hear  what  the  Spirit  saith 
UNTO  the  churches. — Revelation  2'- ^- 

This  phrase,  in  precisely  the  same  form,  occurs  seven 
times  in  the  opening  chapters  of  the  Apocalypse.  It  is 
repeated  at  the  end  of  each  one  of  a  series  of  brief, 
weighty  epistles,  addressed  to  the  circle  of  primitive 
congregations  founded  in  Asia  Minor. 

We  may  readily  conceive  that  Christians  of  all  ages 
and  all  climes  are  meant  to  be  taught  by  the  examples 
here  quoted,  and  the  counsels  here  given.  There  is  the 
declension  of  Ephesus,  and  the  idolatry  of  Pergamos  ; 
there  is  the  deadness  of  Sardis,  and  the  repulsive  luke- 
warmness  of  Laodicea  :  and  by  these  we  are  warned. 
And  then  there  is  the  fidelity  of  Philadelphia  and  the 
steadfastness  of  Smyrna  :  and  by  these  we  are  encour- 
aged. And  beyond  even  these,  there  is  the  tree  of  life 
promised,  the  white  stone  with  the  name  kept  secret 
upon  it,  and  that  morning  star,  which  he  shall  receive 
who  cndureth  to  the  end  ;  and  by  these  we  are  ani- 
mated with  new  energy  in  overcoming  the  world.  It 
seems,  indeed,  as  if  the  warning,  the  encouragement, 
and  the  inspiration,  were  aimed  at  the  same  result ; 
namely,  to  impress  upon  our  minds  the  unusually  se- 


THE   MESSAGE   TO   THE   CHURCHES.  22  5 

Organic  life.  The  "  angel." 

rious  admonition  that  we  listen  to  ''what  the  Spirit  saith 
unto  the  churches." 

Let  us  inquire,  therefore,  at  once,  what  does  the  Spirit 
say  ?  What  has  the  Holy  Ghost  so  uttered  in  the  hear- 
ing of  the  w^orld  ? 

I.  Earliest  of  all  the  lessons  suggested  to  us  in  these 
epistles,  we  might  note  this  :  Every  church  of  Christ 
has  an  organic  life  of  its  own.  This  is  not  only  distinct 
from  the  life  of  any  ether  church,  but  even  distinct  from 
the  life  of  its  members. 

,  In  all  these  seven  letters  the  churches  are  addressed 
solely  in  their  organic  capacity — not  as  loose  and  disin- 
tegrated masses  of  persons,  but  as  bodies  having  an  his- 
toric existence  and  an  exclusive  responsibility.  The 
apostle  is  not  bidden  to  write  to  the  believers  at  large 
in  those  cities,  but  the  congregations  as  such. 

The  expressions  are  very  peculiar.  In  his  opening 
sentence,  in  every  case,  he  turns  first  to  a  personage 
called  '*  the  angel  of  the  church."  Who  this  officer  was 
cannot  now  certainly  be  known.  He  was  doubtless  one 
of  the  pastors,  a  minister  high  in  authority  and  influ- 
ence, standing — for  the  time  being,  at  any  rate — at  the 
head  of  the  organization.  To  him  the  counsel  was 
given  ;  upon  him  the  sin  was  charged  ;  for  him  the 
praise  was  brought ;  with  him  was  left  the  responsibility 
of  bearing  the  tidings,  giving  the  admonitions,  and  di- 
recting the  penitence  and  prayers  of  the  people. 

The  relevancy  of  this  lesson  lies  just  here.  It  is  per- 
haps one  of  the  most  noticeable  of  the  faults  of  mod- 


226  THE   MESSAGE  TO   THE   CHURCHES. 

No  evasion  of  duty.  Organic  history. 

ern  Christians,  wherever  we  turn  our  eyes,  that  they 
are  ti-ying  to  lose  their  individuality  in  the  mass,  hop- 
ing thereby  to  evade  responsibility  and  to  shirk  duty. 
Whereas  God  does  not  even  suffer,  much  less  intend, 
any  man  shall  become  inconspicuous  by  merging  him- 
self in  an  aggregate,  or  hiding  himself  in  a  crowd.  To 
sink  a  Christian  out  of  responsibility  by  absorbing  him 
into  a  church,  is  like  sinking  a  soldier  in  an  army,  and  un- 
dertaking to  lose  him  in  a  platoon  ;  he  only  passes  under 
more  rigid  rules  and  only  shows  more  conspicuously. 

II,  A  second  lesson  comes  right  on  in  the  exact  line 
that  this  indicates,  and  confirms  it :  every  church  has  an 
organic  history  of  its  own,  which  very  likely  makes  up 
its  annals. 

Take,  for  illustration,  the  first  of  the  churches  men- 
tioned in  the  list,  the  old  church  in  Ephesus.  Thirty 
years  had  passed  since  that  time  when  the  apostle  Paul 
indited  to  those  people  the  letter  now  known  in  the 
Bible  as  the  Epistle  to  the  Ephesians.  A  generation 
had  fallen  into  their  graves.  The  congregation  had  all 
this  time  been  changing  and  moulding.  How  many 
private  and  personal  histories  had  been  concentrated 
into  its  life  !  Through  such  a  period  as  that,  how  inevi- 
tably its  annals  must  have  perpetuated  the  lines  of  reli- 
gious biography  in  that  wicked  city  !  How  few  now  re- 
mained of  those  men  who  burned  their  wonderful  books 
of  magic  when  the  first  revival  brought  them  to  see  their 
sin  !  How  the  community  must  have  altered  in  which 
they  had  been  living  and  working ! 


THE   MESSAGE  TO  THE   CHURCHES.  22/ 

The  church  at  Ephesus.  *  Biographies  in  history. 

Good  and  bad,  rich  and  poor,  lofty  and  lowly — how 
they  had  dropped  each  into  his  own  grave  at  last !  And 
now  those  uproarious  voices  which  for  the  space  of  tvvO 
hours,  on  the  day  the  church  was  organized,  had  shouted 
so  ridiculously,  *'  Great  is  Diana  of  the  Ephesians  !  "  were 
all  silent,  hushed  in  the  majesty  and  mystery  which  death 
confers  upon  those  who  enter  its  halls,  the  small  and 
great. 

Get  some  aged  people  together  on  an  anniversary,  and 
a  quiet  stranger  might  soon  ascertain  that  every  church 
has  a  special  history  just  as  striking  as  these  had  in  Asia 
Minor,  and  as  precious.  The  annals  of  any  church  in- 
troduce and  absorb  the  individual  histories  of  its  mem- 
bers and  influential  adherents.  So  rapidly  and  so  im- 
perceptibly do  the  parts  become  supplanted  that  the 
annual  aggregates  never  feel  a  shock.  In  one  year, 
doubtless,  there  w^as  a  man  whose  behavior  or  misfor- 
tunes gave  the  people  a  world  of  trouble  :  in  another 
year,  there  was  a  man  who  gave  them  a  world  of  help. 
A  family  clique  arose  one  season  which  forced  a  mean 
division  ;  there  was  a  blessed  revival  another  season 
which  just  saved  a  wreck.  So  all  this  went  into  the 
general  history,  and  every  event  made  fresh  marks. 
One  man  failed  in  business,  and  that  shook  the  church 
badly  ;  then  a  man  grew  suddenly  wealthy,  and  that 
saved  the  church. 

Let  us  stop  and  think  how  vital,  how  positively  alive 
and  instinct  with  nervous  and  palpitating  existence, 
every  established  organization  comes  eventually  to  be. 


228  THE   MESSAGE  TO  TPIE   CHURCHES. 

Stand  by  the  ark.  Organic  cliaracteristic. 

"  This  and  that  man  was  born  in  her."  Memories  of 
youth  and  age,  of  bloom  and  wasting,  of  joy  height- 
ened and  trial  assuaged,  of  doubt  cleared  away,  of 
penitence  accepted — all  are  sure  to  cluster  around  the 
dear  remembered  spiritual  home.  Here  the  child  was 
trained,  who  now  is  a  man.  Here  stood  the  bride 
wearing  her  fair  veil  and  fairer  forehead  in  maiden 
beauty,  who  now  sleeps  in  her  shroud.  Here  rested  the 
coffin  of  one  beloved  father  or  mother  in  Israel,  who  to- 
day shines  aloft  in  the  light  of  God's  love.  Here  rested 
another,  by  the  side  of  v/hich  charity  stood  in  silence, 
while  mourners  held  their  pea.ce. 

And  so  what  a  comfort  it  is,  as  our  steps  grow  weary, 
to  believe  our  children  will  stand  by  the  old  ark  of  our 
hopes,  and  all  along  the  years  will  step  up  proudly  and 
affectionately  under  the  burden  in  the  solemn  hour  when 
we  are  going  to  drop  it ;  and  thus  a  church  we  have 
loved  and  prayed  for  will  hold  them  still ! 

HI.  Thus  \vc  reach  a  third  lesson  ;  every  church  has 
an  organic  characteristic  of  its  own,  and  this  is  derived 
from  the  social  and  personal  life  of  those  who  compose 
and  manage  it. 

It  is  the  members  that  make  the  church.  We  observe 
that  in  every  case  these  seven  congregations  are  ad- 
dressed with  a  peculiar  allusion  to  some  description, 
which  in  strict  propriety  belonged  to  each  one  of  them 
in  turn.  Just  as  we  speak  familiarly  of  those  various 
congregations  with  which  we  are  acquainted,  all  of  us 
understanding   that   each    has   a  personal   singularity, 


THE   MESSAGE  TO   THE   CHURCHES.  229 

Quick  outlines.  Rock-layers  in  quarries. 

which  might  perhaps  be  mentioned  with  a  word  :  one 
is  rich,  one  is  poor ;  one  formerly  was  fashionable,  one 
is  growing  proud,  one  is  liberal,  another  is  aristocratic, 
and  another  is  always  having  trouble  about  pew-rents, 
and  another  is  ruined  by  the  women  that  gossip  so.  In 
just  this  way  these  bright  little  epistles  delineate  graphi- 
cally the  various  churches  they  were  sent  to,  and  give 
them  quick  outlines  upon  our  imaginations.  You  know 
now,  if  you  have  ever  happened  seriously  to  observe  it, 
precisely  what  sort  of  a  church  that  was  in  any  one  of 
these  places.  Smyrna  was  poor  and  persecuted  ;  Perga- 
mos  was  on  the  whole  true,  but  heterodox  at  points  ; 
Ephesus  was  courageous,  but  had  left  first  love  ;  Laodi- 
cea  was  sickishly  lukewarm. 

All  this,  we  understand,  was  just  what  the  members 
made  the  church.  Just  as  when  we  split  a  rock  in  a 
quarry  into  layers,  traces  will  be  found  in  it  of  lines 
which  the  sea-waves  made  there  ages  ago  while  the  sand 
was  washed  into  place  by  the  tides  and  compacted  into 
stone  ; — so  when  we  read  the  annals  of  any  old  congre- 
gation, we  shall  find  how  certain  epochs  were  fashioned. 
Sometimes  it  was  the  half-dozen  elders  that  gave  form 
to  all  the  church  life.  Sometimes  the  deacons  drew  a 
line  of  demarcation.  Sometimes  a  few  restless  women, 
sometimes  a  few  uncomfortable  men,  set  the  congrega- 
tion on  fire.  Sometimes  little  factions  of  malcontents 
swelled  and  swayed  the  periods  in  which  they  flourished. 
Sometimes  it  was  the  sewing-society,  and  very  often  it 
was  the  choir.     And  always — for  amazing  and  immcasu- 


23a  THE  MESSAGE  TO  THE   CHURCHES. 

Corporations  with  souls.  Organic  power. 

rable  good  or  ill — it  was  the  pastorates  along  in  turn 
that  gained  irresistible  force  and  importance. 

We  sometimes  say  **  corporations  have  no  souls." 
Now  here  is  a  corporation  which  has  a  soul.  It  seems 
to  be  alive,  to  have  veins  and  arteries  and  nerves.  The 
church  is  the  Bride  of  the  celestial  Lamb.  Public  sen- 
timent fixes  fashionable  forms  for  brides  and  churches 
somewhat  alike.  Our  lives  and  tastes  and  feelings  go 
into  the  organizations  which  we  manage.  So  any  man 
who  comes  in  contact  with  a  church  of  the  living  God, 
who  accepts  its  ordinances,  uses  its  activities,  who  aids 
in  its  support,  who  enjoys  even  the  shadow  of  it  falling 
on  his  path,  is  very  close  to  God  ! 

IV.  We  have  reached,  therefore,  the  fourth  lesson 
taught  in  these  brief  epistles  ;  namely,  that  every 
church  has  an  organic  power  of  its  own.  This  ability 
for  usefulness  is  entirely  distinct  from,  and  superadded 
to,  the  influence  exerted  by  individuals. 

In  union  there  is  strength.  Under  our  laws  congre- 
gations usually  become  corporate  bodies.  They  can 
thus  appear  in  the  courts,  can  negotiate  contracts,  can 
hold  property,  can  undertake  projects  of  good.  We 
have  no  reason  to  suppose  that  there  was  anything  pre- 
cisely like  this  in  Asia  Minor,  w^here  all  the  churches 
mentioned  in  these  chapters  were  located*  Yet  they 
were  none  the  less  compact  and  corporate  for  all  that. 
They  instituted  missions,  they  provided  for  impoverished 
believers,  in  their  own  name.  They  seem  to  have  been 
officered  and  equipped  for  each  form  of  outward  work. 


THE   MESSAGE  TO  THE   CHURCHES.  23 1 

Force  in  a  unit.  A  hunter's  rifle. 

The  fact  is,  organic  life  does  not  reside  in  a  mere 
technic  of  law.  Sooner  or  later  every  congregation 
would  go  out  into  merited  extinction,  whose  only  living 
existence  consisted  in  the  decorous  deeds  of  an  orderly 
board  of  trustees.  Church  life  is  figuratively  that  which 
abides  in  a  vine,  and  that  true  Vine  must  be  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  Such  life  has  greater  force,  because  it 
absorbs  Christ's  life  into  it,  and  wields  the  might  of  him 
who  is  its  head. 

We  are  sometimes  caught  by  the  manifestations  of 
pov/er  exhibited  by  even  one  man  in  a  community. 
Whenever  any  movement  is  on  foot,  that  has  any  good 
for  its  aim,  we  instinctively  inquire  what  does  this  man 
think  of  it  ?  We  feel  assured  that  any  plan  is  feasible, 
any  purpose  is  worthy,  when  he  commits  his  name  to  it. 
When  in  our  times  of  perplexity  we  are  on  the  search 
for  some  ingenuity  which  shall  bring  relief  in  difficult 
endeavor,  generally  wc  begin  to  be  encouraged  in  pro- 
portion to  the  cheer  of  his  calls  for  us  to  come  on,  heard 
hopefully  in  the  distance  on  ahead  of  us.  Just  as  hunt- 
ers out  in  the  forest,  finding  their  shots  for  game  unsuc- 
cessful, feel  kindled  now  and  then  as  they  hear  the  re- 
port of  one  well-known  rifle,  which,  as  they  have  learned, 
is  never  v/ont  to  ring  in  the  woods  for  nothing.  So  do 
we  love  to  listen  to  the  joyous  tone  of  that  true  man's 
voice,  planning  with  us  and  in  our  behalf. 

That  is  what  I  mean  by  power.  If  one  man  can  do 
so  much  for  any  real  cause,  hov/  much  more  a  church, 
speaking  like  five  hundred  men  in  one,  can  do  !     Put  a 


232  THE   MESSAGE  TO   THE  CHURCHES. 

Actual  levers  in  society.  Organic  mortality. 

good,  firm,  true  body  of  Christian  people  into  the  midst 
of  any  growing  neighborhood  ;  let  them  begin,  at  the 
earliest  outgo  of  their  organic  life,  to  be  liberal,  pa- 
triotic, public-spirited ;  charitable  towards  others,  and 
faithful  unto  themselves  ;  always  on  the  right  side  of 
everything  that  is  honest  and  of  good  report.  In  a  lit- 
tle while,  they  will  gain  the  confidence  of  all  who  are 
around  them.  And  this  course,  diligently  pursued  for 
a  term  of  years,  will  eventually  make  that  congregation 
one  of  the  actual  levers  of  society.  The  result  is  inevi- 
table by  natural  law.  Real  power  goes  with  real  force. 
And  real  powder  is  as  irresistible  as  the  tides  in  the  sea, 
or  the  changes  in  the  climate.  The  moment  any  useful 
project  has  been  started,  people  w^ill  ask  the  quiet  ques- 
tion :  How  stands  such  and  such  a  congregation  ?  What 
is  it  going  to  do  ?  The  answer  settles  success  or  fail- 
ure. A  chapel  of  ease  for  ''  retired  Christians  "  is  a  poor 
thing. 

V.  Finally,  there  is  given  us  here  the  lesson  that 
every  church  has  an  organic  jnortality  of  its  own.  It  is 
possible  for  it  to  become  actually  extinct,  whenever  it 
is  cast  out  by  God. 

There  is  nothing  superstitiously  self-preserving  in  a 
religious  body  of  human  beings  ;  the  favor  of  high 
Heaven  alone  keeps  it  in  existence  ;  and  ijf  that  favor 
be  forfeited  through  sin,  any  congregation  can  die. 
This  point  is  made  clear  enough  among  these  epistles 
to  the  seven  churches.  In  two  instances  the  warnings 
take  explicit  form:    ''I  will  remove  the  candlestick." 


THE 

MESSAGE 

TO 

THE 

CHURCHES. 

2Z2, 

Churches  dead. 

The  star-fish. 

And  the  tremendous  fact  lies  now  on  historic  record, 
that  of  all  these  seven  organizations  not  one — not  even 
a  vestige  of  one — remains.  They  would  not  hear  nor 
heed  what  the  Spirit  said  unto  them.  Their  very  land 
has  become  missionary  ground.  There  is  not  a  Chris- 
tian in  Ephesus.  Thyatira,  in  its  desolation,  has  no 
memory  of  Lydia,  that  converted  seller  of  purple.  Sar- 
dis  is  abandoned,  and  Philadelphia  has  ceased  to  be  th^ 
home  of  brotherly  love. 

They  say  there  is  a  star-fish  in  the  Caledonian  lakes, 
sometimes  dredged  up  from  the  deep  water.  It  looks 
firm  and  strong,  most  compactly  put  together.  But  the 
moment  you  pull  off  one  of  its  many  branching  limbs, 
no  matter  how  small  it  may  be,  the  singular  creature 
begins  itself  to  dislocate  the  rest  with  wonderful  celerity 
of  contortions,  throwing  away  its  radiate  arms  and  jerk- 
ing from  their  sockets  its  members,  until  the  entire  body 
is  in  shapeless  wreck  and  confusion  of  death,  and  noth- 
ing remains  of  what  was  one  of  the  most  exquisitely 
beautiful  forms  in  nature,  save  a  hundred  wriggling 
fragments,  each  repulsive,  and  dying  by  suicide. 

So  went  those  seven  fair  churches  into  sudden  and 
remediless  ruin.  So  any  church  may  go.  Once  re- 
jected of  God,  congregations  generally  hurry  themselves 
into  dissolution  with  reckless  bickering  and  quarrels; 
and  the  end  comes  swiftly. 


XXI. 

THE   FEW   IN   SARDIS. 

Thou  hast  a  few  names  even  in  Sardis  which  have  not  de- 
filed  THEIR    GARMENTS  ;    AND   THEY    SHALL  WALK  WITH    ME  IN 

white:    for  THEY  ARE  WORTHY.— Revelation  2'.  ^. 

Indistinct  memories,  classic  and  historic,  float  in  our 
minds  at  the  mention  of  the  name  of  Sardis.  There 
dwelt  and  reigned  Croesus,  the  richest  man  in  the  world. 
There  ran  the  Pactolus,  whose  flashing  stream  was 
fabled  to  flow  down  golden  sands.  There,  in  the  plains 
near  by,  was  marshaled  the  most  numerous  host  that 
ever  obeyed  a  single  commander  ;  the  army  over  which 
proud  Xerxes  wept  as  he  remembered  not  one  soldier 
would  be  left  living  in  a  hundred  years.  And  there  was 
lifted  the  mountain  head  of  Sipylus,  upon  whose  rocky 
summit  was  once  to  be  seen  the  far-famed  Niobe,  the 
weeping  mother  changed  into  stone. 

But  gone  now  is  all  the  glory  of  that  magnificent  capi- 
tal. The  armies  are  vanished,  and  the  kings  lie  in  for- 
gotten graves  in  the  desolate  cemetery  of  the  Thousand 
Hills.  The  Pactolus  turns  a  lazy  mill.  Croesus  is  im- 
mortal  only  to  point  a  proverb.  And  no  vestige  of  the 
Niobe  remains,  save  one  that  is  as  symbolically  fitting 
as  it  is  undoubtedly  authentic — the  hot  spring  which  the 
old  story  declared  was  fed  from  her  tears. 


THE   FEW  IN   SARDIS.  235 

Only  a  name  to  live.  "  Names  "  mean  souls. 

Who  earliest  founded  the  Christian  church  in  Sardis 
is  not  certainly  known.  One  bold,  startling  epistle 
among  the  seven  written  by  the  last  of  the  apostolic 
band  from  the  Lonely  Isle,  is  directed  to  the  professed 
followers  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  dwelling  in  the  pre- 
cincts. It  is  from  this  that  we  learn  their  wretched  state. 
They  were  cold,  listless,  and  formal.  Vital  piety  was 
dying  rapidly  out.  The  great  mass  of  Christians  in 
the  city  were  without  any  comforts  or  spiritual  force. 
They  had  only  a  name  that  they  lived,  and  were  dead. 
It  is  not  said  they  were  scandalous,  but  sluggish. 

Still,  not  all  :  an  honorable  moiety  among  the  many 
are  mentioned  as  deserving  of  confidence  and  as  likely 
to  receive  favor.  **  Thou  hast  a  few  names  even  in 
Sardis  which  have  not  defiled  their  garments ;  and 
they  shall  walk  with  me  in  white  :  for  they  are  w^or- 
thy." 

It  is  not  with  the  many,  but  with  these  few,  that  we 
have  to  do  to-day.  And  we  really  at  this  moment  pass 
away  from  the  contemplation  of  Sardis  as  such,  accept- 
ing this  single  verse  as  a  vivid  description  of  the  true 
followers  of  the  Saviour  in  all  time.  If  you  will  care- 
fully examine  the  passage,  you  will  perceive  that  it  in- 
cludes four  particulars,  each  of  which  may  profitably 
occupy  our  attention  for  a  little  while  in  turn,  and  v>^ill 
perhaps  suggest  a  lesson  of  good  to  thoughtful  minds 
willing  to  hear  and  to  heed  it. 

I.  The  first  of  these  is  the  rarity  of  those  who  are  the 
true  saints  on  the  earth.     There  were   *'a  few  names 


236  THE  FEW  IN  SARDIS. 

Rarity  of  saints.  "  So  remarkable  for  nothing." 

even  in  Sardis."  It  is  wise  to  remember,  and  yet  sad  to 
confess,  that  there  are  only  a  few  such  anywhere. 

For  the  real  standard  of  discrimination  in  this  matter 
is  loftier  than  many  imagine.  It  is  easy  to  distinguish  in 
the  Christian  world  around  us  two  widely  differing  classes 
of  persons ;  the  one,  made  up  of  those  who  advance  ear- 
nestly into  life,  and  almost  instantaneously  assume  and 
honorably  hold  positions  of  importance  and  usefulness  ; 
the  other,  made  up  of  those  who  never  rise  into  notice 
at  all,  but  constantly  remain  in  comparative  inefficiency 
and  insignificance.  Those  make  their  influence  to  be 
felt  upon  their  generation  and  leave  their  mark  behind 
them  ;  these  produce  no  impression  while  living,  and 
dying  make  no  sign.  The  former  grow  up  loving, 
lovely,  and  beloved,  and  are  the  ''sought  out''  among 
the  many  ''  forsaken  ; "  the  latter  give  reason  for  the  sar- 
castic saying  ''they  are  remarkable  for  nothing  so  much 
as  for  the  fact  that  they  are  so  remarkable  for  nothing." 

There  are  palpably  two  styles  of  piety  in  the  church 
of  our  Redeemer.  I  do  not  assert  that  he  allows  them 
both,  or  accepts  them  equally  ;  nor  that  their  results  are 
alike  lofty  or  safe  ;  I  only  recognize  what  most  people 
observe  as  a  fact.  The  one  is  vital,  active,  and  efficient ; 
the  other  is  torpid,  listless,  and  low.  And  between 
these  two  extremes  are  found  all  grades  of  activity  and 
all  degrees  of  devotion.  But  sadly  the  truth  presses  on 
every  mind  that  it  is  the  many  who  are  sluggish  and 
fruitless  :  it  is  only  the  few  who  are  faithful.  The  most 
careless  of  all  observers  cannot  have  failed  to  see  that 


THE  FEW   IN   SARDIS.  23/ 

•'  Retired  Christians."  God's  hidden  ones. 

of  any  church  or  community  only  one  man  here  and  an- 
other yonder  belongs  to  what  might  be  called  the  posi- 
tive workers,  minding  and  managing  the  weightiest  in- 
terests. A  little  band  of  executive  laborers  produce 
•what  each  year  gathers. 

The  glory  of  the  church  has,  therefore,  ever  been  and 
will  doubtless  ever  be  these  ^*few"  among  the  many. 
There  was  a  Noah  among  the  antediluvians.  There  was 
a  Lot  among  the  citizens  of  the  plain.  There  were  the 
three  Hebrew  youths  in  the  Babylonish  court.  There 
were  the  seven  thousand  in  Ahab's  time,  who  had  not 
bowed  the  knee  to  Baal.  And  there  were  some  saints 
in  Caesar's  household  in  Rome.  So  there  are,  doubt- 
less, in  most  of  the  forms  of  ecclesiastical  organization, 
however  heterodox  and  loose,  some  who  are  living  lives 
of  saving  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  belong  to  the  *4iid- 
den  ones  "  of  God. 

But  it  is  these  few  who  save  the  many.  Ten  right- 
eous men  in  Sodom  would  have  delivered  the  city  from 
the  hail  of  fire.  The  worth  cannot  be  estimated  of  any 
one  individual  who  is  truly  faithful  to  the  Master.  It  is 
the  rarity  which  increases  the  value.  Common  gems 
make  cheap  jewels.  A  Christian  really  alive  amid  the 
deadness  of  our  too  formal  communions,  is  a  treasure 
and  a  choice  benediction  from  God  himself.  We  find 
that  out  sometimes  for  the  first  time  when  a  good  man 
dies.  We  discover  that  a  great  cause  is  trembling  ;  and 
then  it  occurs  to  us  that  this  is  what  he  used  to  stand 
by  and  steady.     We  see  the  enemy  coming  in  through  a 


23S  THE   FEW  IN   SARDIS. 

Vanished  hands.  Voices  that  are  still. 

gate  he  was  wont  to  guard.  A  duty  is  no  longer  done, 
which  we  had  always  relied  Vv^ithout  disappointment  on 
him  to  perform.  We  are  conscious  that  our  poor  hearts 
are  sinking  and  growing  weaker,  through  lack  of  his 
prayers,  and  our  souls  are  growing  dull  from  want  of 
the  old  chieftaincy  of  example  which  kindled  them.  We 
miss  the  words  of  wise  counsel  and  gentle  sympathy 
and  cordial  reassurance  with  vv^hich  we  had  always  been 
met.  When  we  come  up  to  look  in  each  other's  faces, 
and  take  each  other's  hands,  and  cast  a  quick  glance  of 
wistful  searching,  almost  unconsciously,  around  for  that 
other  face  and  that  other  hand — gone,  then  we  begin  to 
feel  the  blankness  of  a  sense  of  loss.  A  score  of  the 
many  cannot  take  the  place— ^they  worry  us  if  they  at- 
tempt to  occupy  the  place — of  even  one  of  the  ''few." 
Consecrated,  forceful.  Christian,  manhood  is  rare,  rare 
indeed  in  this  shallov/  and  easy-going  world. 

II.  In  the  second  place,  this  verse  which  we  are  study- 
ing tells  us,  next  to  the  rarity  of  true  saints,  their  purity. 
They  ''have  not  defiled  their  garments." 

Of  course  we  all  understand  the  precise  force  of  this 
figure.  Just  as  a  man,  clad  in  a  robe  of  linen,  seeks 
with  great  carefulness  to  pass  undeiiled  through  the 
dust,  the  smoke,  and  the  ashes  of  a  factory  or  a  fur- 
nace, so  the  child  of  God  is  represented  as  endeavoring 
fastidiously  to  keep  his  garments  of  hope  and  faith,  of 
meekness,  truth,  and  honesty,  free  from  all  contamina- 
tion, even  while  he  is  mingled  in  the  confused  round  of 
everyday  life  with  other   men,   better  or  worse.     You 


THE   FEW  IN  SARDIS.  239 

Spiritual  lepers.  Commonplace  tests. 

perceive  that  this  is  the  ancient  emblem  repeated  from 
the  Old  into  the  New  Testament.  Is  there  not  some- 
thing singularly  suggestive  in  the  name  always  given  to 
sin  under  the  former  dispensation  ?  There  it  was  called 
''uncleanness."  He  who  had  transgressed  any  law  was 
held  to  be  "defiled."  Hence  all  those  washings,  those 
*'  divers  baptisms  "  of  the  ritual.  Ah,  if  only  spiritual 
lepers  had  now,  as  of  old,  to  keep  crying  *' unclean,  un- 
clean !  "  in  the  highways,  as  they  drew  near  their  neigh- 
bors, how  plaintive  the  air  would  be  with  the  wails  of 
the  penitent ! 

Our  trouble  is,  that  w^e  turn  ourselves  away  from  the 
grand  commonplaces  of  religious  life,  under  the  plea 
that  we  are  spiritual  and  live  on  an  elevated  plane.  We 
do  not  sing  the  fifteenth  Psalm  as  we  might.  It  is  not 
interesting  to  talk  about  backbiting  and  swearing  and 
usury  and  false  witness.  Such  details  concerning  world- 
liness  are  too  radical,  too  searching,  for  this  generation 
to  bear.  To  make  truth-telling  an  evidence  of  regen- 
eration ;  to  question  grown  men  about  ungenerous  gos- 
sip ;  to  offer  mercantile  Christians  the  subject  of  exor- 
bitant interest  for  meditation  in  the  preparatory  lecture  ; 
all  this  would  be  pronounced  out  of  taste  in  the  age  of 
conversation  concerning  the  ''higher  life." 

But,  it  so  happens  that  the  Scriptures  fasten  precisely 
upon  our  little  personal  habits  and  tastes  and  behaviors 
and  principles,  and  make  them  the  test  of  piety.  Holi- 
ness of  life  is  relied  upon  more  than  vividness  of  expe- 
riences.    Nothing  within  the  range  of  human  possibil- 


240  THE  FEW   IN   SARDIS. 

The  priest  Jaddua.  Cecil's  temptation. 


ity  so  moves  the  world  into  admiration  of  Christians  as 
perfect  purity.  There  is  in  history  the  tale  of  Alexan- 
der, who  was  met,  when  he  came  to  besiege  Jerusalem, 
by  the  high  priest  Jaddua  ;  this  old  man  went  forth  to 
hold  conference  with  him.  He  wore  his  robes  of  office  ; 
and  so  splendid  was  the  presence  of  this  ambassador  of 
God  with  his  garments  of  embroidered  gold  and  his 
shining  plate  across  his  forehead  on  which  was  graven 
the  name  of  Jehovah,  that  the  emperor  fell  to  the  ground 
in  reverence.  That  may  well  have  been  true  ;  it  makes 
us  think  of  the  scriptural  fact  that  the  Roman  soldiers, 
coming  to  apprehend  our  Lord  in  the  garden  after  the 
betrayal,  ''went  backward  and  fell  to  the  ground,"  the 
moment  he  said,  *'  I  am  he."  There  was  an  undoubted 
majesty  in  the  pure  face  and  the  spotless  holiness  of  the 
suffering  Master. 

This  is  a  day  of  dreadful  sudden  scandals  among  the 
followers  of  Jesus.  "  Men  fall,"  said  the  shrewd  Guizot, 
*'on  the  side  to  which  they  lean."  The  world  is  not  a 
friend  to  grace  at  all.  In  his  autobiography  the  honest 
Cecil  tells  us  that,  on  one  occasion,  he  went  to  visit  an 
anxious  sinner  in  his  parish  ;  he  found  him  on  a  sick 
bed,  and  there  was  on  the  wall  above  the  couch  a  paint- 
ing so  beautiful  as  to  attract  his  notice,  and  he  actually 
forgot  himself  in  administering  to  the  wan^ts  of  the  per- 
ishing soul.  He  was  so  grieved  by  the  dereliction  that 
he  gave  up  forever  a  gallery  of  art  he  had  been  loving 
to  frequent.  It  may  be  our  privilege  to  use  the  world, 
but  we  are  not  to  abuse  it,  or  be  abused  by  it. 


THE   FEW   IN   SARDIS.  241 

The  saints'  prospect.  The  land  of  "  the  living." 

III.  Let  us,  however,  go  back  to  the  verse  once 
more  ;  for  it  suggests  to  us,  in  the  third  place,  the  pros- 
pect of  the  saints  :  the  confident  and  scriptural  expec- 
tation of  these  few  among  the  many,  who  have  lived  tlic 
pure  life;  *^and  they  shall  w^alk  with  me  in  white." 
Remember,  now,  who  is  speaking,  and  v/here  he  is,  and 
you  will  see  that  this  emphatic  declaration  includes 
three  promises  in  one  :  activity — *'  they  shall  w^alk  : " 
companionship — '^  they  shall  w^alk  with  me  :  "  and  glory — 
**they  shall  walk  w^ith  me  in  white." 

I.  The  word  here  rendered  ''walk  "  means  to  accom- 
pany around.  Thence  it  is  applied  by  an  easy  trope  to 
living  wath,  sharing  the  continuous  lot  of,  one  with 
whom  we  dwell.  It  here  presents  to  us  the  animating 
anticipation  of  all  the  true  children  of  God,  that  they 
have  yet  before  them  an  endless  life  in  the  midst  of  the 
many  incitements  and  amenities  of  the  social  commu- 
nity in  heaven. 

In   our  feebleness  and  mistake  we   sometimes   look 

upon  those  who  are  taken  from  us  as  dead  ;  whereas, 

the  correct  conception  is  that  they  have  never  been  so 

much  alive  as  now.     An  aged  believer  was  met  by  his 

friend,  who,  grasping  his  hand,  said,  *'Why,  I  had  not 

thought  you  were  in  the  land  of  the  living!"     *'I  am 

not  yet,"  was  the  clearer  answ^er,  ''  but  I  shall  enter  it 

soon."     Those  who  are  gone  are  preser^^ed,  those  who 

are  departed  are  at  home,  those  who  are  lost  are  saved. 

*'That  which  thou  sowest  is  not  quickened  except  it 

die."     In  all  the  plenitude  of  enjoyment,  in  all  the  ex- 
II 


242  THE   FEW  IN   SARDIS. 

Brahma  asleep.  Not  work,  but  worry. 

ercise  of  powers  newly  invigorate,  in  the  very  sunlight 
of  reunion  and  communion,  they  are  walking  this  very 
day  in  an  exalted  existence,  of  which  we  know  nothing 
as  yet  but  the  glimmer  of  its  gladness  through  the  trans- 
lucent gates  of  pearl.  Said  the  dying  Taylor,  ''  God 
has  a  work  even  in  heaven  for  his  children  to  do." 

For  even  the  ''rest"  of  heaven  is  not  a  repose  of  in- 
dolent listlessness  and  inaction.  The  Hindoos  believe 
that  the  great  god  Brahma  spends  the  infinite  ages  of 
his  eternity  evermore  asleep.  And  their  most  exalted 
notions  of  the  state  of  the  blessed  are  only  clustered 
around  one  lazy  anticipation  of  sharing  the  slumbers  of 
this  deified  sluggard.  But  our  Bible  tells  us  that  the 
''works"  of  the  righteous  do  "follow  them."  Our 
trouble  here  is,  not  the  energy  we  put  forth,  but  the 
waste  of  it,  and  the  thwarting  of  it,  and  the  needlessness 
of  much  of  it.  It  is  not  work,  but  worry,  that  breaks 
the  human  heart  ;  and  in  heaven  there  will  be  work 
without  worry.  "Therefore  arc  they  before  the  throne 
of  God,  and  they  serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  tem- 
ple." So  the  Christian's  departure  is  only  a  sign  of  re- 
lief. "Children,"  said  John  AVesley's  mother,  "when 
I  am  released,  sing  a  psalm  of  praise  to  God  ! " 

2.  "  They  shall  walk  with  me  : "  the  companionship 
is  that  of  Christ  himself,  for  it  is  he  that  is  here  speak- 
ing. And  hence,  we  see  that  what  the  saints  have  been 
sighing  for  most  longingly,  earnestly  pleading  that  they 
might  have  it  even  for  one  glad  hour  of  nearness  and 
communion — that  they  are  by  and  by  to  have  without 


THE   FEW   IN   SARDIS.  243 

Moses'  prayer.  The  transfiguration. 

interruption  and  in  full  measure  forever,  the  presence 
of  the  Saviour  in  person.  ''Things  internal,"  says  the 
good  Bishop  Leighton,  ''will  then  be  things  eternal." 

On  the  mountain  prayed  Moses,  "  Show  me,  O  Lord, 
thy  glory ! "  Not  then  could  his  petition  be  granted  ; 
he  could  not  look  upon  the  Lord's  face  and  live.  Fif- 
teen hundred  years  he  had  to  wait,  and  then  upon  an- 
other mountain  he  saw  the  transfigured  Christ.  He 
was  satisfied  then  to  behold  the  glory  and  to  share  it. 
Around  him  in  that  wonderful  hour  he  contemplated 
the  true  picture  of  heaven.  For  there  were  Peter, 
James,  and  John,  from  the  new  dispensation,  with  him- 
self and  Elijah  from  the  old  ;  three  disciples  from  the 
living  and  two  prophets  from  the  dead  ;  all  appearing 
in  glory,  knowing  each  other,  and  giving  exchange  of 
welcome.  But  the  chief  attraction  in  the  scene  was 
found  in  the  person  of  the  Son  of  Man  among  them, 
now  clearly  revealed  as  the  Son  of  God  ;  and  they 
talked  "of  the  decease  he  should  accomplish  at  Jerusa- 
lem." 

So  when  the  entire  church  of  Immanuel  come  home  ; 
when  the  patriarchs  and  seers  of  old,  with  the  martyrs 
and  witnesses  of  after  years,  meet  on  the  mount  of  God  ; 
when,  gathered  from  the  four  winds,  all  the  sealed  shall 
crown  the  summit  of  the  heavenly  hill ;  they  will  have 
but  one  song  to  sing,  and  one  form  to  look  upon  ;  lift- 
ing up  their  eyes,  they  will  see  "Jesus  only." 

3.  In  the  use  of  the  expression  with  which  this  prom- 
ise closes  most  of  us  will  recognize  the  return  of  the 


244  THE   FEW   IN   SARDIS. 

Walking  "  in  white."  "  Fine  linen." 

beautiful  figure  we  have  already  considered:  "They 
shall  walk  with  me  in  white."  It  is  the  symbol  of  glory 
hereinafter  to  be  revealed  to  believers. 

In  his  earthly  transfiguration,  the  face  of  our  Lord 
*'  did  shine  as  the  sun,  and  his  raiment  was  white  as  the 
light ;  so  as  no  fuller  on  earth  could  whiten  it."  Such 
descriptions  refer  to  the  stainless,  uncontaminated  pu- 
rity of  those  who  are  living  in  the  celestial  life.  When 
it  is  said  that  to  the  Lamb's  wife,  that  is,  the  Church,  it 
was  ''granted  that  she  should  be  arrayed  in  fine  linen 
clean  and  white,"  we  are  told  expressly  the  symbolic 
reason  :  "  The  fine  linen  is  the  righteousness  of  the 
saints."  Those  whom  the  New  Testament  seer  in  apo- 
calyptic vision  beheld  arrayed  in  the  heavenly  gar- 
ments, one  of  the  elders  told  him  were  *'they  which 
came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and  had  washed  their 
robes,  and  had  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb." 

Hence,  here  are  two  thoughts  distinctly  suggested, 
each  of  which  has  great  value.  The  one  is,  that  the 
glory  of  that  future  state  is  not  so  much  in  its  triumphs 
and  trophies  as  in  its  graces.  The  gloiy  is  its  sinlcss- 
ness,  its  perfect  freedom  from  all  pollution.  So  it  is  of 
much  more  importance  v/hat  we  shall  be^  than  what  we 
shall  have.  Then  the  other  thought  is,  ^that  holiness 
here  is  its  own  rev/ard  here  and  yonder  too.  For  it  is 
those  who  ''have  not  defiled  their  garments,"  of  whom 
it  is  said,  "  they  shall  walk  with  me  in  white."  White 
now,  white  forever ! 


THE  FEW   IN   SARDIS.  245 

Sardian  dyes.  Purple  vats. 

Now,  before  we  leave  this  most  interesting  figure,  let 
us  be  patient  enough  to  ask  the  question  whether  there 
was  any  particular  reason  why  the  apostle  should  choose 
such  a  curious  form  of  rhetorical  speech.  It  is  worth 
mentioning  that  Sardis  was  as  historically  remarkable 
for  its  purple  and  crimson  dyes  as  Thyatira.  John  may 
have  more  than  once  seen  the  white  linen  brought  up  to 
these  vast  vats  filled  with  the  red  fluid,  looking  exactly 
like  blood ;  he  must  have  watched  the  operation  of 
plunging  the  cloth  in,  and  seen  how  the  previous  stains, 
if  such  there  were,  were  all  covered  and  lost  in  that  royal 
red.  Now,  by  an  easily  understood  process  of  mind,  he 
would  imagine  the  work  reversed ;  he  might  even  be 
supposed  to  repeat  the  words  of  the  ancient  prophet 
softly  to  himself,  as  he  would  keep  thinking  :  *^  Christ's 
blood  is  not  like  this  Sardian  or  Tyrian  dye,  that  turns 
white  to  purple  and  gray  to  red  ;  it  turns  the  dull  and 
defiled  into  beauty,  and  the  stained  into  purity :  *  Come 
now,  and  let  us  reason  together,  saith  the  Lord  :  Though 
your  sins  be  as  scarlet,  they  shall  be  as  white  as  snow  ; 
though  they  be  red  like  crimson,  they  shall  be  as  wool ! ' " 

IV.  So,  finally,  we  reach  the  words  in  this  v^erse  which 
specify  the  prerogative  of  the  saints.  Really,  it  covers 
much  worth  thinking  about :  their  rarity,  their  purity, 
their  prospect,  and  now  their  prerogative  :  "  they  are 
worthy." 

The  significance  of  this  statement  takes  its  force  from 
the  connection  in  which  it  stands.  For  it  is  given  as  a 
reason  for  an  expectation  tliat  they  shall  one  time  re- 


246  THE  FEW  IN  SARDIS. 

"  They  are  worthy."  Desert  and  meetness. 

ceive  the  felicities  of  the  heavenly  companionship  with 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  ''They  shall  walk  with  me  in 
white,  for  they  are  worthy."  One  thing  is  their  own; 
one  privilege  belongs  to  them  inalienably  ;  one  prerog- 
ative is  asserted  in  their  behalf ;  they  are  proper  com- 
panions for  God's  Son. 

This  sounds  very  bold,  and  a  discrimination  is  per- 
haps needed  to  guard  against  mistake.  We  must  care- 
fully examine  in  what  this  worthiness  consists.  There 
are  two  meanings  to  the  word  as  used  in  the  Scriptures  : 
desert  and  meetness.  Here  it  needs  only  to  be  said 
with  all  emphasis  that  there  is  no  desert  in  any  saint  of 
anything  beside  wrath  and  judgment.  There  is,  how- 
ever, a  fitness  for  heaven,  and  this  is  the  gift  of  grace 
as  much  as  heaven  itself  is.  The  apostle  bids  us  give 
"thanks  to  the  Father,  who  hath  made  us  meet  to  be 
partakers  of  the  inheritance  of  the  saints  in  light." 
This  white  robe  that  the  redeemed  are  to  wear  is  the 
robe  of  the  Redeemer's  merits.  He  gives  it  to  those 
whom  he  loves. 

And  when  it  is  given,  it  belongs  to  them,  and  they 
need  to  ask  no  favors  of  the  universe  that  sees  the  honor. 
For  the  promise  and  the  benediction  call  to  and  answer 
each  other  out  in  the  celestial  air.  Listen  :  "  He  that 
hath  an  ear  let  him  hear  what  the  Spirit  ^aith  unto  the 
churches ;  To  him  that  overcometh  will  I  give  to  eat 
of  the  tree  of  life,  which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  paradise 
of  God."  There  is  the  proffer  ;  and  here  is  the  reward  : 
"  Blessed  are  they  that  do  his  commandments,  that  they 


THE   FEW  IN   SARDIS.  24/ 

The  saints'  "  right."  "  Rich  as  Croesus." 

may  have  right  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may  enter  in 
through  the  gates  into  the  city."  Oh,  the  glory  of  the 
thought  that  poor  human  beings — dust  and  ashes — are 
lifted  so  high  by  divine  grace  that  they  actually  have 
prerogatives  in  celestial  companionship  which  no  crea- 
ture can  challenge  !  They  can  come  up  to  the  gate  of 
heaven,  and  have  a  ''right"  to  enter,  as  a  king's  son 
can  come  to  the  palace  door,  and  no  servant  will  claim 
to  stop  him,  the  prince  and  heir,  from  passing  into  his 
father's  house  ! 

This,  then,  is  the  believer's  privilege  and  final  out- 
look :  to  walk  in  the  midst  of  stirring  activities  ever 
new,  ever  joyous,  and  ever  successful ;  sharing  a  com- 
munion with  Christ  ever  free,  high,  hearty,  and  divine  ; 
dwelling  with  a  conscious  purity  absolutely  stainless 
among  the  unstained  :  this  is  heaven  ! 

Such  a  conception  takes  all  the  sting  out  of  death. 
A  heart  full  of  love  for  the  Redeemer  longs  only  to  go 
to  him.  It  has  no  great  professions  to  make  ;  it  simply 
wants  to  get  away  quietly,  and  leave  the  record  of  fidel- 
ity behind.  "  Never  mind  the  dying  testimony,"  said 
Whitefield  ;  ''give  me  the  living  testimony."  What  is 
not  true  of  the  worldling  is  exactly  true  of  the  Christian. 
Come  back  to  Sardis,  a  moment  more  for  a  little  story. 
Croesus,  this  man  who  gave  his  name  to  a  proverb,  was 
at  last  conquered  by  an  enemy.  His  capital  was  lost, 
his  army  was  defeated,  and  he  was  about  to  be  burned 
to  death  by  his  conqueror.  While  he  was  lying  bound 
on  the  funeral  pile,  he  called  aloud  three  times  the  name 


248  THE  FEW  IN  SARDIS. 

"  Solon— Solon— Solon  !  "  The  resurrection  dawn. 

of  Solon — Solon — Solon  !  They  asked  him  what  he 
meant.  And  then  it  came  out  that  this  Athenian  phil-| 
osopher,  once  on  a  flying  visit  to  Sardis,  had  warned  \ 
Croesus  of  coming  reverses,  and  bade  him  ''never  say 
he  was  happy  till  he  was  dying  !  "  Now  he  was  dying, 
and  an  awful  sarcasm  was  in  the  words  !  But  this  is 
actual  Christian  experience.  The  child  of  God  is  happy 
in  death,  for  it  is  the  ushering  in  of  the  latter-day  glory 
upon  his  ransomed  soul ! 

The  first  hour  in  the  other  vrorld  must  be  full  of  sur- 
prises. I  can  imagine  how  the  heir  of  some  princely 
estate,  thrown  suddenly  into  possession,  journeys  to  the 
mansion  and  arrives  after  the  nightfall.  I  can  picture 
his  curious  interest  as  he  tries  to  ascertain  the  extent  of 
his  wealth,  looking  out  from  the  window  into  the  moon- 
lit meadows  and  lawns.  But  what  is  all  this  to  the  sight 
he  will  see,  when  in  the  full  burst  of  the  morning  his 
eyes  take  in  the  sweep  of  mountain  and  valley,  forests 
and  plains,  from  the  wide  ancestral  portal  thrown  open 
to  him  as  its  lord  ! 

Christians  can  talk  here  together  in  the  night-time 
about  their  heavenly  estate.  But  none  have  yet  imag- 
ined what  will  be  the  completed  vision  to  be  seen  when 
at  the  resurrection  dawn  they  stand  before  the  door  of 
what  is  their  Father's  house — and  their  own  ! 


XXII. 

THE   LION   OF  JUDAH. 

And   onr  of  the  elders  saitii   unto  me,  Weep  not  :  behold, 
THE  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Juda,  the  Root  of  David,  hath 

PREVAILED     to     OPEN     THE     BOOK,    AND     TO     LOOSE    THE    SEVEN 
SEALS  THEREOF.— A'cvelaiion  5  :  5. 

It  was  reported  some  few  years  ago,  that  a  Sabbath- 
school  superintendent  in  one  of  our  great  cities  rose  in 
the  midst  of  a  convention  and  publicly  prayed  that  ''our 
Father  in  heaven  would  keep  these  little  lambs  of  his 
flock  from  the  ravages  of  the  Lion  of  Judah  !  "  What 
must  one  do  with  a  misconception  like  that  ? 

The  theme  brought  before  us  on  this  occasion  is  full 
of  interest.  It  turns  us  back  to  the  beginning  of  the 
Bible  for  an  interpretation  of  a  name  given  to  our  Sav- 
iour at  the  end.  Genesis  clear  across  eighteen  hundred 
years  touches  the  Apocalypse.  The  prophecy  of  Jacob 
finds  its  answer  in  the  vision  of  John. 

When  the  time  had  arrived  for  the  patriarch  to  turn 
his  face  to  the  wall,  gather  up  his  feet  in  the  bed  and 
die,  he  sent  for  an  audience  of  his  sons  from  all  the  far 
places  of  their  abode.  They  came  around  their  father's 
couch  with  something  of  sadness  and  perhaps  of  alarm  ; 
for  it  was  understood  that  their  fortunes  were  to  be  told 
under  inspiration,  and  Reuben  was  to  be  disinherited  in 


250  THE   LION   OF  JUDAH. 

Jacob's  death-bed.  John's  vision. 

favor  of  Judah.  One  after  another  advanced  at  the  call, 
heard  those  sober  words  of  prediction  that  outlined  and 
fixed  his  future,  then  reverently  retired  for  a  new 
brother's  summoning.  By  and  by,  Judah  stood  in  his 
place  to  listen;  and  this  is  what  Israel  said:  *' Judah, 
thou  art  he  whom  thy  brethren  shall  praise  ;  thy  hand 
shall  be  in  the  neck  of  thine  enemies  :  thy  father's  chil- 
dren shall  bow  down  before  thee.  Judah  is  a  lion's 
whelp  ;  from  the  prey,  my  son,  thou  art  gone  up  :  he 
stooped  down,  he  couched  as  a  lion,  and  as  an  old  lion  ; 
who  shall  rouse  him  up  ?  The  sceptre  shall  not  depart 
from  Judah,  nor  a  lawgiver  from  between  his  feet,  until 
Shiloh  come  ;  and  unto  him  shall  the  gathering  of  the 
people  be." 

So  explicit  is  the  application  of  this  name  of  Judah's 
Lion  to  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  here  in  the  Apocalypse, 
that  there  is  not  even  a  pressing  need  to  quote  the  half- 
verse  in  the  epistle  to  the  Hebrews  :  "  For  it  is  evident 
that  our  Lord  sprang  out  of  Judah." 

Let  us  attempt  to  study  a  Vv^hole  chapter  at  a  time — 
the  fifth  of  Revelation.  There  we  shall  find  an  accurate 
account  of  a  spectacle  which  the  apostle  John  saw,  that 
seems  to  have  greatly  aroused  his  curiosity  ;  this  was 
followed  by  a  conversation  he  heard,  which  evidently 
very  seriously  depressed  his  feelings;  but  there  came 
directly  to  him  an  encouragement  which  was  calculated 
to  lift  his  heart  ;  then  he  witnessed  a  scene  of  celestial 
worship,  quite  full  of  grandeur  and  wonder  ;  and  this 
ended  with  a  song  sung  by  three  extraordinary  choirs. 


THE   LION   OF  JUDAH.  25 1 

The  celestial  library.  The  book  of  Providence. 

I.  The  description  of  the  spectacle  he  saw  is  found 
in  the  opening  verse  :  *' And  I  saw  in  the  right  hand  of 
him  that  sat  on  the  throne  a  book  written  within  and 
on  the  back  side,  sealed  with  seven  seals."  The  notice- 
able things  here  are  the  book  and  the  seals  of  the  book  ; 
what  do  these  mean  ? 

I.  What  we  know  of  the  book  is  conjectural.  The 
idea  suggested  is  that  of  a  permanent  record.  Four 
volumes  are  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures  as  belonging 
to  God's  celestial  library,  (i.)  The  "book  of  the  liv- 
ing " — Ps.  69  :  28 — in  which  are  enumerated  all  items  of 
personal  human  history,  as  God  has  decreed  them — Ps. 
139  :  16.  (2.)  The  **book  of  the  law," — Gal.  3  :  10 — in 
which  are  included  all  God's  demands  for  obedience  and 
duty.  (3.)  The  "book  of  remembrance  " — Mai.  3  :  16 — 
in  which  are  noted  all  the  incidents  of  each  believer's 
continued  experience — Ps.  56:8.  (4.)  The  "book  of 
life  " — Phil.  4  :  3 — in  which  are  recorded  all  the  names 
of  those  redeemed  by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb,  and  no 
others— Rev.  20  :  15.  Of  these  perhaps  the  likeliest  to 
be  the  one  John  nov/  saw  in  God's  right  hand  was  the 
first,  containing  the  secret  decrees  of  divine  providence 
concerning  human  life  and  the  destiny  of  nations.  But 
no  certainty  can  be  predicated.  And  the  sole  sugges- 
tion to  be  relied  upon  is  that  our  Maker,  who  is  also  our 
Judge,  proceeds  in  all  his  government  on  no  caprice, 
but  on  strict  principles  of  justice,  as  of  one  who  keeps 
books  wherein  all  things  appear,  and  by  which  all  souls 
are  to  be  tested  at  the  last. 


252  THE  LION   OF  JUDAH. 

The  seven  seals.  The  challenge  made. 

2.  What  we  learn  of  the  seals  is  plain.  For  there  can 
be  no  significance  to  such  a  thing  beyond  what  the  an- 
cient custom  would  indicate,  namely,  that  the  book  wa.s 
closed.  Divine  purposes  are  absolutely  inscrutable. 
Times  and  seasons,  events  and  incidents,  are  concealed 
from  human  knowledge  till  it  is  God's  will  to  reveal 
them.  "Seven"  was  considered  the  perfect  number; 
and  this  might  mean  that  the  volume  was  altogether 
sealed,  or  that  it  was  sealed  in  an  orderly  way  so  as  to 
be  opened  only  a  part  at  a  time. 

II.  Now  comes  the  conversation  which  John  heard. 
An  angel  made  a  challenge  :  no  one  accepted  it:  John 
burst  into  tears.  ''And  I  saw  a  strong  angel  proclaim- 
ing with  a  loud  voice,  Who  is  worthy  to  open  the  book, 
and  to  loose  the  seals  thereof  ?  And  no  man  in  heaven, 
nor  in  earth,  neither  under  the  earth,  was  able  to  open 
the  book,  neither  to  look  thereon.  And  I  wept  much, 
because  no  man  was  found  worthy  to  open,  and  to  read 
the  book,  neither  to  look  thereon." 

1.  A  strong — some  great  chief — angel  cries  aloud  for 
a  chosen  champion  to  appear  who  would  assume  the 
right  to  open  this  volume.  The  question  raised  does 
not  seem  to  be  so  much  one  of  ability  as  of  character 
or  rank.  Who  is  ivorihy?  The  assumption  is  that  Jeho- 
vah has  no  equal.  This  demand  was  calQulated  to  ar- 
rest attention,  and  to  fasten  it  upon  the  fact  that  "none 
but  himself  could  be  his  parallel." 

2.  No  one  advances  at  the  call.  Heaven  had  no  an- 
gel even  among  the  brightest  seraphs  that  burned  be- 


THE  LION   OF  JUDAH.  253 

No  one  can  interpret  God.  A  man's  tears. 

fore  the  throne  :  earth  had  no  sage  even  among  its  wis- 
est, best,  or  most  exalted  :  nor  had  hell  under  the  earth, 
either  of  fallen  angels  or  of  lost  men,  any  one  who 
could  come  forward  now,  and  unseal  this  mysterious 
volume. 

3.  The  apostle  fell  into  tears.  His  disappointment 
was  utter.  His  desire  had  been  insatiate.  Having  seen 
so  much  through  the  open  door,  he  wished  passionately 
to  see  more.  And  now  it  was  a  shame  that  the  universe 
had  no  voice  which  could  speak  to  such  a  challenge. 
But  note  one  thought  for  ourselves  just  here.  It  really 
appears  pitiable  to  find  such  a  man  at  his  w^orst.  Jere- 
miah was  weeping  ;  but  he  had  reason.  Paul  wept ; 
but  he  was  talking  of  sinners.  Jesus  wept ;  for  he  pit- 
ied the  mourning  sisters.  But  there  w^as  no  need  what- 
ever for  John's  tears.  **  He  that  believeth  shall  not  make 
haste."     John  learned  all  he  wished  before  Ions:. 

HI.  What  was  the  encouragement  he  received  ?  ''And 
one  of  the  elders  saith  unto  me,  Weep  not :  behold,  the 
Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Juda,  the  Root  of  David,  hath  pre- 
vailed to  open  the  book,  and  to  loose  the  seven  seals 
thereof."  He  was  met  with  no  rebuke  :  but  he  received 
a  word  of  sympathy,  and  then  a  word  of  information, 
both  of  which  gave  him  help. 

I.  The  elder  said  ''Weep  not."  Christ  used  to  say  to 
his  disciples,  "Be  not  afraid."  The  angel  said  to  Paul 
in  the  night,  "Fear  not."  The  disciples  said  to  Barti- 
meus,  "Be  of  good  comfort."  Gabriel  said  to  Daniel, 
"Thou   art  greatly  beloved."     Cynical   irony  has   de- 


254  THE   LION  OF  JUDAH. 

Just  a  kind  word.  The  Lion  is  a  Lamb. 

clared  that  words  are  cheap.  But  God  has  told  believ- 
ing people  to  be  kind  to  each  other  ;  and  sometimes  just 
a  word  of  good  feeling  lifts  one's  spirits  very  much. 

2.  But  what  John  wanted  most  was  to  understand 
about  the  mysteriously  scaled  book.  So  he  had  a  word 
of  explanation  added.  It  was  certainly  to  be  opened. 
For  the  elder  told  him  that  a  being  would  soon  show 
himself — divine,  as  the  Root  of  David — human,  as  the 
Lion  of  Judah — who  should  be  worthy  and  be  permitted 
to  loosen  the  seven  seals.  John  looked  at  once  for  the 
Lion  ;  he  saw  a  Lamb. 

IV.  And  then  followed  the  scene  of  wonderful  wor- 
ship he  witnessed.  The  vision  now  dazzles  us  too  much 
for  calm  details  of  exposition.  This  Lamb  of  God  we 
clearly  understand  was  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  our  Sav- 
iour.    Here  we  see  him  at  his  highest. 

I.  His  rank  was  supreme  over  all ;  so  he  stood  in  the 
midst.  ''And  I  beheld,  and,  lo,  in  the  midst  of  the 
throne,  and  of  the  four  beasts,  and  in  the  midst  of  the 
elders,  stood  a  Lamb,  as  it  had  been  slain,  having  seven 
horns  and  seven  eyes,  which  are  the  seven  Spirits  of 
God  sent  forth  into  all  the  earth."  Horns  are  the  em- 
blem of  power  ;  he  had  seven  ;  so  he  had  perfect  or  lim- 
itless power.  Eyes  are  the  emblem  of  intelligence  ;  he 
had  seven  ;  so  he  had  perfect  knowledge,  ^nd  also  he 
had  the  seven-fold  gifts  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Hence, 
omnipotence,  omniscience,  and  infinite  holiness  show 
that  in  Immanuel  the  Redeemer  *'  dwelleth  all  the  ful- 
ness of  the  Godhead  bodily." 


THE   LION   OF  JUDAH.  255 

Christ  takes  the  book.  A  king's  gift. 

2.  Ilis  office  was  to  ascertain  and  execute  the  entire 
will  of  Jehovah.  And  just  here  comes  out  the  illustra- 
tion we  need  of  the  fortieth  Psalm,  in  which  the  Mes- 
siah is  represented  as  saying  :  "  Then  said  I,  Lo,  I  come  : 
in  the  volume  of  the  book  it  is  written  of  me  ;  I  delight 
to  do  thy  will,  O  my  God  :  yea,  thy  law  is  within  my 
heart."  So  he  comes  forward  now  before  the  universe, 
and  takes  the  seven-sealed  volume  as  his  own  by  right. 
*^  And  he  came  and  took  the  book  out  of  the  right  hand 
of  him  that  sat  upon  the  throne." 

3.  His  honors  came  at  once,  for  he  was  ** worthy." 
He  had  **  prevailed."  All  the  shining  ranks  of  heaven 
fell  down  in  meek  obeisance  and  adoration:  *'And 
when  he  had  taken  the  book,  the  four  beasts  and  four 
and  twenty  elders  fell  down  before  the  Lamb,  having 
every  one  of  them  harps,  and  golden  vials  full  of  odors, 
which  are  the  prayers  of  saints."  They  had  harps  ;  so 
they  praised  him  with  music  ;  they  had  vials  of  odors  ; 
so  they  praised  him  with  supplications.  It  is  related 
that  Alexander  once  bestowed  a  gift  so  large  upon  one 
of  his  courtiers  that  the  surprised  man  cried  out  in  de- 
precation, *'  Oh,  this  is  too  much  for  me  to  receive  ! " 
And  the  answer  came  with  affectionate  encouragement : 
*^  Always  ask  great  things  of  a  king  ;  nothing  is  too 
much  for  him  to  give  !  " 

This  wonderful  verse  does  not  stand  alone.  On  an- 
other occasion  the  apostle  witnessed  a  similar  scene  : 
*^  And  another  angel  came  and  stood  at  the  altar,  having 
a  golden  censer  ;  and  there  was  given  unto  him  much 


256  THE  LION   OF  JUDAII. 

Prayers  make  best  praises.  Jesus  is  God. 

incense,  that  he  should  offer  it  with  the  prayers  of  all 
saints  upon  the  golden  altar  which  was  before  the  throne. 
And  the  smoke  of  the  incense,  which  came  with  the 
prayers  of  the  saints,  ascended  up  before  God  out  of  the 
angel's  hand."  Pra)^ers  to  a  God  like  ours  sometimes 
make  the  very  best  praises. 

It  is  evident  the  chapter  will  have  to  be  divided,  and 
we  reserve  the  song  John  heard  for  a  study  by  itself. 
There  are  two  at  least  of  the  thoughts  which  the  spec- 
tacle suggests  that  I  am  glad  to  interject  before  we  go 
on  away  from  them. 

I.  One  of  them  is  this  :  the  announcement  is  made 
that  earthly  arrangements  of  providential  government 
and  keeping  of  the  saints  are  hereafter  committed  to 
Jesus  Christ.  All  human  life  is  now  ordered  by  his  wis- 
dom. For  he  has  taken  the  book  out  of  the  hands  of 
his  Father,  and  is  *Svorthy  "  to  open  its  seven-fold  seals. 
Hence,  the  Being  who  manages  each  earthly  experience 
is  one  who  in  his  own  person  has  shared  humanity  in 
all  that  disturbed  history  could  put  in  it.  How  well  he 
understands  us,  whoever  we  are  ! 

So  there  is  quite  a  good  w^ord  of  comfort  here  for  the 
poor.  There  is  no  respect  of  persons  with  God.  No 
peasant  from  the  obscurest  village — no  shepherd  from 
the  most  secluded  plain — no  artisan  in  th^  clean  gar- 
ments of  an  honest  calling — ever  was  kept  waiting  in 
the  ante-chamber,  asking  audience  of  his  Lord.  He 
may  have  it  any  day,  any  instant,  for  the  seeking :  the 
publican  had  it  in  the  parable,  even  when  the  Pharisee 


THE  LION   OF  JUDAH.  257 

Watts'  hymn.  All  goes  into  the  book. 

missed.     This  king  of  heaven  is  Jesus  ;  and  all  the  dis- 
pensations of  daily  life  are  with  him. 

"Our  souls  shall  tread  the  desert  through  with  undiverted  feet; 

And  faith  and  flaming  zeal  subdue  the  terrors  that  we  meet : 

A  thousand  savage  beasts  of  prey  around  the  forest  roam, 

But  Judah's  Lion  guards  the  way,  and  guides  the  wanderers  home." 

So,  likewise,  there  is  a  word  of  encouragement  here 
for  those  cumbered  with  much  serving.  More  than  once 
are  such  bidden  to  cast  their  care  upon  the  Saviour  ;  and 
the  wonderful  invitation  is  backed  with  the  argument 
that  he  **  careth  for  them."  Christ  came  not  to  be  min- 
istered unto,  but  to  minister.  He  took  that  book  out 
of  his  divine  Father's  hand  with  his  Father's  consent  and 
in  pursuance  of  a  covenant.  Hence,  patient  working- 
men  that  toil  for  bread — wives  and  mothers  w^ho  seem 
to  live  just  for  children  that  are  clamorous,  feeble,  and 
petulant — watchers  who  find  their  worried  world  within 
the  four  walls  of  a  sick-room — nurses  that  strive  to  allay 
the  querulous  sorrows  of  a  beloved  invalid — industrious 
fathers,  up  with  the  early  sunrise  to  be  the  first  at  labor, 
when  jobs  are  few — all  these  have  their  very  present 
help  in  every  time  of  need.  A  tranquil  eye  is  keep- 
ing watch  of  them,  and  all  fidelity  goes  down  in  the 
book,  and  will  be  found  there  w^hen  the  seven  seals 
break  ! 

How  fine  a  thing  it  is  to  know  that  all  which  any  true 
Christian  prizes  is  kept  up  so  high  and  so  far  out  of 
reach  that  no  violence  can  touch  it !     Jesus  holds  the 


258  THE   LION   OF  JUDAH. 

The  martyr  Basil.  The  lamb  as  a  symbol. 

book  in  his  own  hand,  and  we  have  the  testimony  of 
John  that  no  one  can  open  it  besides.  Our  lives  are 
hid,  with  Christ,  in  God.  Sometimes  the  world  imagines 
it  has  despoiled  us  of  some  cherished  possession.  It  is 
like  the  thief's  stealing  our  deeds  of  the  homestead  we 
live  in  ;  that  is  all.  He  gets  only  a  paper  ;  the  deed  is 
recorded  in  God's  book  ;  and  that  which  we  owned  is 
just  as  safe  as  ever.  No  child  of  God  ever  yet  was  de- 
spoiled of  a  good  title  to  a  home  in  **  The  Saints*  Rest." 
The  Christian's  treasure  is  in  heaven.  Nothing  earthly 
can  lay  a  finger  on  it.  *'  You  may  take  away  my  head," 
said  the  old  martyr  Basil ;  **  but  that  is  all  ;  you  cannot 
take  away  my  crown." 

2.  Then  the  other  thought  is  this :  the  Lamb  of  God 
is  also  the  Lion  of  Judah.  ^'  Behold  the  goodness  and 
severity  of  God."  Much  that  is  very  significant  there 
is  in  this  name  given  to  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  A  lamb 
is  the  emblem  of  innocence  and  purity.  Reference  is 
made  to  his  suffering  on  the  cross,  so  far  as  the  sacrifice 
is  concerned.  But  as  descriptive  of  his  character,  it 
may  strike  some  as  weak.  For  a  lamb  is  almost  the 
only  creature  in  existence  which  has  no  weapon  of  of- 
fence or  defence.  This  is  designed  to  teach  us  how 
gentle  and  kind  he  is  while  he  offers  his  grace. 

Furthermore,  this  form  of  speech  here  is  yery  strange. 
This  term  rendered  /aml>  occurs  only  once  besides  in  the 
New  Testament,  and  that  is  in  the  passage  where  Simon 
Peter  is  told  to  feed  the  Lord's  lambs  ;  it  is  not  the  usual 
word  for  lambs  ;  it  is  a  diminutive  ;  it  means  /iU/e  lambs. 


THE  LION  OF  JUDAH.  259 

The  Lamb  is  a  Lion.  "  The  wrath  of  the  Lamb." 

And  so  the  added  suggestion  is  given  that  Jesus  is  very- 
innocent,  and  very  gentle,  and  very  kind. 

Now  John  looks  for  the  Lamb,  and  the  songs  praise 
the  Lamb  ;  but  all  the  while,  every  soul  in  heaven  knows 
he  is  a  Lion.  While  the  Saviour  pleads  wuth  sinners, 
he  is  gentle  and  kind  ;  but  when  he  comes  to  judgment, 
he  will  come  with  all  his  majesty  upon  him  !  I  know 
of  no  expression  in  the  Bible  that  touches  me  so  as  this  : 
**  The  wrath  of  the  Lamb  ! "  **  And  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  and  the  great  men,  and  the  rich  men,  and  the 
chief  captains,  and  the  mighty  men,  and  every  bond  man, 
and  every  free  man,  hid  themselves  in  the  dens  and  in 
the  rocks  of  the  mountains  ;  and  said  to  the  mountains 
and  rocks.  Fall  on  us,  and  hide  us  from  the  face  of  him 
that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  from  the  wrath  of  the 
Lamb." 

When  he,  who  all  along  for  these  years  of  waiting  and 
inviting  has  been  wearing  the  form  of  gentleness  and 
peace,  shall  have  changed  his  visage,  and  put  on  his 
form  of  justice  and  vengeance — when  he,  Vv^ho  has  been 
pleading  as  an  advocate,  shall  show  himself  as  the  judge 
to  pronounce  sentence  upon  the  ungodly — who  is  there 
that  will  be  willing  to  confront  him  ?  who  shall  be  able 
to  stand  ? 

It  seems  melancholy  to  end  our  study  of  God's  word 
with  such  a  picture  of  threatening.  There  are  better 
verses  than  these  for  us  to  repeat  to  each  other.  Oh, 
how  much  finer  and  gladder  is  that  prophecy  of  the 
saints'  rest  in  heaven  with  their  Lord,  the  Lamb ! 


260  THE   LION  OF  JUDAH. 

•'  The  Lamb  shall  lead  them."  At  home  in  heaven. 

"Therefore  are  they  before  the  throne  of  God,  and 
serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  temple  :  and  he  that  sit- 
teth  on  the  throne  shall  dwell  among  them.  They  shall 
hunger  no  more,  neither  thirst  any  more  ;  neither  shall 
the  sun  light  on  them,  nor  any  heat.  For  the  Lamb, 
which  is  in  the  midst  of  the  throne,  shall  feed  them,  and 
shall  lead  them  unto  living  fountains  of  waters  :  and 
God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes." 

And  so  it  comes  to  us  that  believers  will  not  find 
themselves  strangers  in  heaven.  For  he  whom  they 
have  known  best  is  he  to  whom  they  are  to  stand  clos- 
est. He  to  whom  they  owe  most  is  he  w^ho  will  give  to 
them  the  more  that  is  coming.  The  Lamb  who  made 
them  saints  is  the  guide  who  will  make  them  seers. 
The  Saviour  for  w^hom  they  have  suffered  longest  will 
be  the  Jesus  who  suffered  for  them  first.  And  every 
joy  of  the  infinite  future  v/ill  be  brought  to  them  in 
the  hand  which  was  once  pierced. 


XXIII. 
THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF  GOD. 

And  they  sung  a  new  song,  saying,  Thou  art  worthy  to  take 

THE  book,  and  to  OPEN  THE  SEALS  THEREOF  :  FOR  THOU  WAST 
SLAIN,  AND  HAST  REDEEMED  US  TO  GOD  BY  TUY  BLOOD,  OUT  OF 
EVERY  KINDRED,  AND  TONGUE,  AND  PEOPLE,  AND  NATION  ;  AND 
HAST  MADE  US  UNTO  OUR  GOD  KINGS  AND  PRIESTS:  AND  WE 
SHALL  REIGN  ON  THE  SARTn.—Revelatio?!  5  ;  9,  lO. 

The  sight  of  a  great  mass  of  soldiers  is,  to  a  thought- 
ful man,  often  saddening.  They  have  such  exposure  in 
doing  their  ordinary  duty  ;  there  is  such  a  necessary 
separateness  in  their  lives  ;  there  are  among  them  so 
many  sure  to  die  and  lie  in  unknown  graves.  Yet  each 
is  the  embodiment  of  a  history,  a  hope,  and  a  destiny. 
Xerxes  is  reported  as  having  wept  aloud  when  from  a 
height  he  was  once  reviewing  the  largest  army  he  ever 
commanded. 

But  when  soldiers  sing,  there  is  always  some  enliven- 
ment  in  the  spectacle.  Ten  or  twenty  thousand  male 
voices  make  very  glorious  music  ;  they  say  the  plains 
quiver  with  the  vibration.  When  ancient  Xenophon's 
hosts  first  saw  the  Euxine  Sea,  after  the  painful  march 
which  almost  wore  them  out,  they  cried  with  a  great 
shout  at  once,  ^'' Thalatta !  thalatta!'' — **The  sea!  the 
sea  I "  so  loudly,  says  the  veracious  historian,  that  the 


262  THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF   GOD. 

God's  army  always  at  praise.  Faber's  "  Music." 

very  birds  dropped  down  on  the  wing,  and  the  waves  lay 
quiet  under  the  sweep  of  the  sound. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that  whenever  we  are  shown 
these  pageants  of  the  grand  army  of  God  in  review,  tlie 
Scriptures  represent  the  legions  as  singing.  And  usu- 
ally we  find  recorded  the  exact  words  of  their  song. 
Evidently  more  is  made  of  music  in  heaven  than  we  are 
wont  to  make  of  it  here  on  earth.  At  any  rate,  the 
words  are  brought  into  more  prominence  than  modern 
artists  are  accustomed  to  give  them.  A  strain  of  inarti- 
culate sound  has  power,  but  the  joining  of  intelligent 
thought  to  the  tones  is  worth  more  by  far  as  an  act  of 
adoration.     Recall  some  of  Faber's  lines  : 

**  There  are  sounds  like  flakes  of  snow  falling 
In  their  silent  and  eddying  rings; 
We  tremble — they  touch  us  so  lightly, 

Like  the  feathers  from  angel's  wings. 
There  are  pauses  of  marvelous  silence. 

That  are  full  of  significant  sound, 
Like  music  echoing  music 

Under  water,  or  imder  ground. 
O  Music  !    thou  surely  art  worship  ; 

But  thou  art  not  like  praise  or  prayer; 
And  words  make  better  thanksgiving 
Than  thy  sweet  melodies  are." 

f 
It  may  be  worth  while,  for  the  sake  of  some  fine  les- 
sons we  might  hope  to  learn,  to  look  carefully  through 
one  of  these  exhibitions  in  the  Apocalypse.     Our  atten- 
tion may  well  be  fastened  upon  that  music,  for  there 


THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF  GOD.  263 

The  I.ion  of  Judah.  The  new  song. 

were  three  anthems  in  the  performance,  each  with  its 
distinct  theme,  and  all  were  succeeded  by  a  chorus  of 
one  word,  the  shortest  and  the  best  of  all. 

We  have  already  been  over  the  earlier  part  of  this 
fifth  chapter  of  the  Revelation,  and  have  seen  the  grand 
spectacle  as  it  appeared  when  the  Lion  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah  took  the  book  of  divine  decrees  from  Jehovah's 
hands.  It  was  at  this  supreme  moment  that  the  celes- 
tial singing  began. 

The  scene  grows  dazzling  as  one  proceeds  in  the  read- 
ing ;  and  while  a  writer  might  well  be  humiliated  at  the 
poverty  of  his  own  language  in  any  attempt  to  para- 
phrase it,  the  exceeding  beauty  of  the  inspired  descrip- 
tion lures  him  forward  in  the  study  of  its  details  even  to 
the  smallest  particular. 

I.  There  was  first  the  believers*  song.  Its  theme  was 
redemption,  the  salvation  of  the  soul  through  the  blood 
of  the  Lamb.  So  its  singers  were  the  ransomed  :  "And 
they  sung  a  new  song,  saying,  Thou  art  worthy  to  take 
the  book,  and  to  open  the  seals  thereof :  for  thou  wast 
slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  to  God  by  thy  blood,  out  of 
every  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people,  and  nation  ;  and 
hast  made  us  unto  our  God  kings  and  priests :  and  we 
shall  reign  on  the  earth." 

This  song  was  "  new"  necessarily,  for  the  theme  was 
absolutely  fresh  in  celestial  history.  There  had  been 
sin  in  heaven,  and  there  had  been  justice  wrought  on 
those  who  had  sinned.  Some  of  the  angels  had  fallen 
from  their  high  estate,  and  were  at  the  moment  expi- 


264  THE   SINGING   LEGIONS   OF   GOD. 

The  redeemed  singing  alone.  Personal  reminiscences. 

ating  their  wickedness  in  the  abodes  of  the  lost.  No 
atonement  was  ever  made  or  offered  in  their  behalf. 
Here  was  therefore  a  subject  never  before  celebrated  in 
the  songs  of  God's  house. 

It  was  exclusive  also,  for  only  those  who  knew  what 
it  meant  could  sing  it  with  the  spirit  and  the  under- 
standing. Emphasis  must  be  laid  upon  the  expressions 
of  personal  acknowledgment.  *'Thou  hast  redeemed 
tts :''  ''thou  hast  made  us  unto  our  God  kings  and 
priests."  The  experience  of  each  child  of  God  is  indi- 
vidual. Reminiscence  is  a  part  of  his  duty,  and  it  al- 
ways leads  to  gratitude,  and  starts  a  new  song.  No 
man  can  sing  as  heartily  as  he  who  has  received  most 
favor.  Says  the  Psalmist:  ''I  waited  patiently  for  the 
Lord  ;  and  he  inclined  unto  me,  and  heard  my  cry.  He 
brought  me  up  also  out  of  an  horrible  pit,  out  of  the 
miry  clay,  and  set  my  feet  upon  a  rock,  and  established 
my  goings.  And  he  hath  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouth, 
even  praise  unto  our  God  :  many  shall  see  it,  and  fear, 
and  shall  trust  in  the  Lord."  We  could  reason  legiti- 
mately, therefore,  that  the  song  of  the  saints  in  heaven 
would  be  sung  by  saints  alone.  But  a  verse  there  is 
elsewhere  which  sets  this  at  rest :  *'  And  they  sung  as  it 
were  a  new  song  before  the  throne,  and  before  the  four 
beasts,  and  the  elders  :  and  no  man  cou\d  learn  that 
song  but  the  hundred  and  forty  and  four  thousand, 
which  were  redeemed  from  the  earth." 

It  was  a  great  song.  For  the  multitude  of  singers  was 
simply  innumerable.     So  the  sound  rose  **  like  mighty 


THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF   GOD.  265 

Sixteen  missionaries.  "A  royal  priesthood." 

thimde rings,  and  the  voice  of  many  waters."  The  re- 
deemed come  from  all  regions  of  the  earth,  and  from  all 
ages  of  history.  I  once  heard  sixteen  foreign  mission- 
aries singing  together  the  hymn,  *'  Thus  far  the  Lord 
hath  led  me  on,"  to  the  tune  of  ''Hebron,"  each  using 
the  native  language  where  he  had  been  laboring.  It 
sounded  harmoniously,  and  was  about  as  intelligible  as 
choirs  generally  make  it.  What  a  glorious  heritage  of 
worth  the  church  has  in  its  continuous  history  ! 

It  was  likewise  a  royal  song.  It  is  a  pity  that  our 
translators  put  that  present  tense  into  the  future.  For 
the  redeemed  do  not  say  *' wq  s/ia//  reign,"  but  "we  are 
reigning."  Christians  are  the  regal  and  the  regnant 
race  in  the  world  now.  The  Lord  declared  that  his  peo- 
ple should  be  '*a  kingdom  of  priests."  Peter  calls  be- 
lievers ''a  holy  priesthood,"  and  afterward,  in  another 
place,  "a  royal  priesthood."  The  glory  of  each  Chris- 
tian is  in  this  office  of  prayer  ;  for  he  has  an  undoubted 
power  and  privilege  of  intercession.  When  the  embassy 
from  the  northern  army  returned  from  Rome  to  make 
report,  they  said  :  *' We  found  a  city  of  palaces,  and  a 
kingdom  of  kings."  Heaven  is  a  city  of  only  one  pal- 
ace, in  which  are  many  mansions  ;  but  those  who  dwell 
there  are  princes. 

2.  Next  in  John's  vision  came  the  song  of  f/ie  angels. 
The  theme  of  this  was  the  character  and  rank  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

Observe  the  vast  numbers  of  the  singers,  and  the  stress 

they  put  on  their  strain  with  a  ''loud  voice  :  "     "And  I 
12 


266  THE  SINGING  LEGIONS   OF   GOD. 

The  angels  sing  also.  Glory  to  the  Lamb. 

beheld,  and  I  heard  the  voice  of  many  angels  round 
about  the  throne  and  the  beasts  and  the  elders  :  and 
the  number  of  them  was  ten  thousand  times  ten  thou- 
sand, and  thousands  of  thousands." 

Observ'e  the  vast  ascription  of  honors  to  Christ :  *'  Say- 
ing with  a  loud  voice,  Worthy  is  the  lamb  that  was  slain 
to  receive  power,  and  riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength, 
and  honor,  and  glory,  and  blessing."  This  seems  to  in- 
clude everything  that  mind  can  conceive  of  supreme 
ownership  and  control.  They  lay  the  universe  down 
at  his  feet.  These  heavenly  beings  are  acting  in  full 
obedience  to  the  apostle  Paul's  earthly  exhortation  : 
"  Let  this  mind  be  in  you,  which  w^as  also  in  Christ 
Jesus :  who,  being  in  the  form  of  God,  thought  it  not 
robbery  to  be  equal  with  God  ;  but  made  himself  of  no 
reputation,  and  took  upon  him  the  form  of  a  servant, 
and  was  made  in  the  likeness  of  men  :  and  being  found 
in  fashion  as  a  man,  he  humbled  himself,  and  became 
obedient  unto  death,  even  the  death  of  the  cross.  Where- 
fore God  also  hath  highly  exalted  him,  and  given  him 
a  name  which  is  above  every  name  :  that  at  the  name 
of  Jesus  every  knee  should  bow,  of  things  in  heaven, 
and  things  in  earth,  and  things  under  the  earth;  and 
that  every  tongue  should  confess  that  Jesus  Christ  is 
Lord,  to  the  glory  of  God  the  Father." 

Observe  the  special  reason  they  suggest  for  their  sur- 
render. It  is  as  ''  the  Lamb  that  was  slain  "  that  they 
exalt  him  to  the  eminence.  These  angels  had  no  part  in 
the  atonement,  but  they  knew  just  where  Christ's  great- 


THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF   GOD.  26/ 

The  angels  challenged.  The  creatures'  song. 

est  exploits  had  been  done.  They  had  for  ages  ''desired 
earnestly  to  look  into  "  this  mystery  of  his  humiliation  ; 
now  they  understood  what  it  meant.  Just  before  Jesus 
left  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  on  his  way  to  suffering  and 
death,  while  even  the  lowliest  garments  of  his  humilia- 
tion were  on  him,  they  had  been  challenged  to  pay  him 
the  usual  adoration  :  ''  And  again,  when  he  bringeth  in 
the  first-begotten  into  the  world,  he  saith,  And  let  all 
the  angels  of  God  worship  him."  As  if  the  Almighty 
would  say,  ''  You  shall  not  even  now  despise  my  Son  ! 
though  he  is  bearing  sin  and  shame  and  contumely,  give 
him  every  honor  as  the  chief  in  the  realm  !  "  Now  they 
saw  him  coming  to  his  old  place  and  glory  again  ;  and 
they  knew  that  the  Lamb  of  God  had  brought  fresh 
honor  to  his  adorable  name. 

3.  Then  the  choir  of  creatures  begins  the  anthem  as- 
signed to  them  ;  and  now  the  theme  is  the  dominion  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ:  ''And  every  creature  which  is 
in  heaven,  and  on  the  earth,  and  under  the  earth,  and 
such  as  are  in  the  sea,  and  all  that  are  in  them,  heard  I 
saying,  Blessing,  and  honor,  and  glory,  and  power,  be 
unto  him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and  unto  the 
Lamb  for  ever  and  ever." 

Just  notice  the  very  singular  voices  employed  in  this 
choir.  Birds  and  beasts,  and  worms  and  fishes — oh, 
wonder  !  how  will  such  creatures  be  able  to  sing  to- 
gether ?  God  is  to  listen,  and  he  will  understand  them 
and  be  satisfied.  Much  of  this  world's  music  must  be 
lost  to  us,  our  hearing  is  so  very  imperfect.     Scientific 


268  THE   SINGING  LEGIONS   OF  GOD. 

Imperfect  hearing.  The  chorus. 

people  calculate  the  swiftness  of  insects'  wings  in  their 
flying  by  the  musical  note  the  vibration  makes  in  the 
air ;  but  there  comes  a  time  when  the  most  delicate  ear 
fails  to  perceive  sound,  while  the  small  creature  cer- 
tainly goes  on  in  its  path.  That  note  God  hears,  but 
Ave  do  not.  Most  likely  God  hears  and  loves  what  does 
not  ever  reach  us  ;  our  silences  may  be  full  of  singing 
to  him. 

4.  Now  we  reach  the  grand  choms  with  which  the 
singing  concluded.  Led  by  representatives,  whose  mys- 
terious nature  and  office  we  cannot  altogether  explain, 
it  would  seem  as  if  the  whole  three  choirs  burst  forth 
into  one  final  ascription:  ''And  the  four  beasts  said, 
Amen.  And  the  four  and  tw^enty  elders  fell  down  and 
worshiped  him  that  liveth  for  ever  and  ever." 

So  intricate  and  perplexing  is  this  whole  question 
concerning  those  beings  here  seen  in  the  presence  of 
G^d,  that  it  would  only  divert  our  study  from  its  profit- 
able purpose  if  we  w^ent  in  upon  it.  A  passage,  quoted 
from  a  previous  chapter,  will  give  us  all  the  information 
we  really  need  : 

''And  before  the  throne  there  was  a  sea  of  glass  like 
unto  crystal :  and  in  the  midst  of  the  throne,  and  round 
about  the  throne,  v/ere  four  beasts,  full  of  eyes  before  and 
behind.  And  the  first  beast  was  like  a  lion,  and  the  sec- 
ond beast  like  a  calf,  and  the  third  beast  had  a  face  as  a 
man,  and  the  fourth  beast  was  like  a  flying  eagle.  And 
the  four  beasts  had  each  of  them  six  wings  about  him ; 
and  they  were  full  of  eyes  within  :  and  they  rest  not  day 


THE  SINGING  LEGIONS   OF   GOD.  269 

The  "  beasts."  The  Ghizeh  pyramid. 

and  night,  saying,  Holy,  holy,  holy.  Lord  God  Al- 
mighty, which  was,  and  is,  and  is  to  come.  And  when 
those  beasts  give  glory,  and  honor,  and  thanks  to  him 
that  sat  on  the  throne,  who  liveth  for  ever  and  ever,  the 
four  and  twenty  elders  fall  down  before  him  that  sat  on 
the  throne,  and  worship  him  that  liveth  for  ever  and 
ever,  and  cast  their  crowns  before  the  throne,  saying. 
Thou  art  worthy,  O  Lord,  to  receive  gfory  and  honor 
and  power :  for  thou  hast  created  all  things,  and  for 
thy  pleasure  they  are  and  were  created." 

Here  was  the  entire  universe  engaged  in  a  song.  For 
if  the  **  beasts,"  or  **  living  creatures,"  were  like  the 
cherubim,  and  so  were  the  symbols  of  supremacy  and 
excellence  of  the  redeemed  world  ;  if  they  had  tlie  head 
of  an  ox,  and  of  an  eagle,  and  of  a  lion,  and  of  a  man, 
and  so  were  the  chiefs  of  the  races  on  the  ground  or  in 
the  air — and  if  they  thus  stood  for  all  things  alive,  after  a 
removal  of  sin's  curse — then  the  song  was  sung  in  tre- 
mendous unison  by  all  who  shone  that  moment  in  the 
shadowless  presence  of  God. 

Here  was  an  anthem  in  one  word.  And  '''' Avien''  is 
the  same  in  all  human  languages.  Two  travelers  sat  on 
the  summit  of  the  great  pyramid  at  Ghizeh  ;  they  tried 
in  vain  to  get  into  conversation  until  one  exclaimed, 
*'  Hallelujah  !  "  and  the  other  answered,  ''  Amen  !  " 

Here  was  the  universal  endorsement  of  the  themes  of 
all  the  songs  at  once.  For  amen  means,  *'so  be  it."  It 
was  the  old  word  chosen  when  the  vast  tribes  of  Israel 
gave  their  assent  to  the  law  of  Moses,  and  the  covenant 


270 

THE 

SINGING 

LEGIONS 

OF 

GOD. 

A  satisfied  realm 

The  Amen 

of  peace. 

from  Joshua:  ''All  the  people  said,  Aineny  Hence, 
here  in  heaven,  it  was  the  acquiescence  of  all  creation. 

There  must  have  been  some  sort  of  preference  in 
Jesus'  mind  for  this  singular  word.  ''Verily,  verily,"  is 
in  the  Greek  simply  "Amen,  amen."  It  is  a  particle  of 
intense  asseveration.  Twice  in  one  verse  of  prophecy 
is  Jehovah  addressed  as  "the  God  of  Truth  ;"  but  what 
is  there  rendered  "truth"  is  Amen;  he  is  "the  God  of 
Amen."  Here  in  the  Revelation  Christ  is  called  "the 
Amen,  the  faithful  and  true  Witness."  He  is  the  God 
of  absolute  truth,  the  King  of  the  kingdom  of  truth  ; 
"  For  all  the  promises  of  God  in  him  are  yea,  and  in 
him  Amen,  unto  the  glory  of  God  by  us." 

Here,  then,  was  the  last  doxology  of  a  satisfied  realm, 
that  the  Lamb  of  God  was  going  hereafter  to  rule.  This 
was  the  calm  rejoicing  of  a  universe,  which  had  reached 
good  government  at  last  !  "  The  kingdoms  of  this  world 
are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord,  and  of  his  Christ ; 
and  he  shall  reign  forever  and  ever  !  " 

Oh,  there  is  rest  for  the  tired  heart  in  that  sweet  glad 
Amen  !  There  is  peace  for  all  the  singing  soldiers  of 
God  in  that  Amen  !  There  is  solace  for  the  disturbed 
foreboding  mind  in  that  Amen  !  Oh,  there  is  infinite 
satisfaction  for  the  universe  in  that  Amen  !  It  makes 
one  feel  like  falling  down,  as  the  elders  (;^id,  and  wor- 
shiping him  "that  liveth  forever  and  ever." 


XXIV. 

THE   HEAVENLY   CITY. 

And  I  John  saw  the  holy  city,  new  Jerusalem,  coming  down 
FROM  God,  out  of  heaven,  prepared  as  a  bride  adorned  for 
HER  husband. — Revelation  21 :  2. 

Has  any  authentic  and  authoritative  description  of 
heaven  ever  been  given  us,  so  that  we  may  rest  in  the 
notion  we  form,  and  may  pass  it  on  to  our  children  as 
the  true  one  ?  Are  we  quite  certain  that  they  understand 
how  a  tree  can  grow  up  in  a  golden  pavement,  and  how 
a  river  can  flow  out  from  under  a  throne  ?  Do  gardens 
have  city-walls  and  solid  gates  for  defences,  with  jewels 
of  marvelous  size  for  their  foundations  on  the  out- 
side ? 

Evidently  such  florid  orientalisms  of  description  are 
not  intended  to  be  exact  and  literal.  But  if  not,  what 
is  there  about  heaven  ? 

Some  people  cling  to  their  old  child-thought  of  a  lo- 
cality beyond  the  stars,  a  region  above  the  bounds  of 
human  vision,  where  a  city  is  built,  or  a  paradise  is  laid 
out.  They  talk  about  the  "  Father's  house  with  many 
mansions  ; "  and  they  take  great  comfort  in  thinking  how 
the  redeemed  are  walking  in  its  courts.  They  even  im- 
agine they  hear  Beulah  bells  ringing  in  their  wakeful 


272  THE   HEAVENLY  CITY. 

The  renewed  earth.  Heaven  begins  below. 

midnights,  as  the  sound  of  singing  voices  comes  from 
over  the  river. 

Others  think  that  heaven  is  just  this  earth  new, 
cleansed  at  last  from  its  curse,  and  fitted  again  as  it 
was  in  the  days  of  Eden  bloom  to  be  the  home  of  the 
sinless  and  happy  sons  of  men.  They  quote  the  verse 
from  the  Apocalypse  which  relates  how  John  saw  the 
New  Jerusalem  coming  down  out  of  heaven  from  God, 
and  resting  here  on  this  purified  planet,  with  its  founda- 
tions garnished  with  precious  stones,  with  its  gates  of 
pearl,  and  its  streets  of  gold.  It  is  clear  that  they  are 
never  at  all  troubled  with  the  literal  form  of  expression 
which  asserts  that  this  city  comes  ''  out  of  heaven,"  so 
as  to  feel  pressed  with  the  question,  where  is  the 
*'  heaven  "  it  comes  from,  and  does  it  leave  the  heaven 
behind  when  it  comes?  Or  does  the  heaven  come 
along,  the  kingdom  following  the  capital  ? 

Others  still  say  that  Scripture  does  not  mean  to  teach 
us  to  expect  a  localized  heaven  at  all.  They  would  pro- 
nounce it  a  mere  fancy,  grown  out  of  a  mistaken  inter- 
pretatioHj  to  assert  that  somevv^here  above  our  heads, 
in  the  fire-lit  line  of  our  Saviour's  departure  from  the 
mount  of  ascension,  there  is  a  fixed  place  to  which  the 
good  are  going  and  gone.  They  believe  heaven  is  only 
a  state  ;  a  renovation  of  our  nature,  so  that^each  has  an 
individual  heaven  in  his  own  breast,  into  which  Jesus 
Christ  comes  and  is  formed  an  indweller  ;  and  they  w^ill 
tell  us  that  happiness  consists  not  in  any  harps  of  gold, 
or  sprigs  of  palm,  or  anthems  of   music,  but  in  a  meek 


THE  HEAVENLY  CITY.  2/3 

Heaven  in  the  heart.  Reserves  of  Scripture. 

and  holy  disposition  characteristic  of  the  sanctified 
heart,  when  fully  turned  to  the  Saviour.  If  this  be  the 
true  notion  of  a  ''better  country,"  then  our  fulness  of 
joy  will  consist  in  rest  from  toil,  victory  after  warfare, 
glory  succeeding  suffering,  bliss  after  pain,  and  peace 
after  turmoil  and  care  of  daily  exposure. 

One  thing  is  certain  :  however  men  may  differ,  they 
must  come  to  a  single  conclusion  finally  ;  that,  although 
the  Bible  is  crowded  with  hints  as  to  the  superior  bless- 
edness of  the  abode  of  God's  people,  yet  it  nowhere 
gives  us  an  explicit  account  of  its  nature  or  locality. 
Here  revelation  is  simply  silent  in  its  reserve. 

Speculative  discussions  must  prove  profitless,  for  the 
Lord  God  has  not  designed  to  make  clear  anything  be- 
yond the  fact  that  heaven  will  be  all  the  redeemed  will 
need  or  will  wish.  "  I  shall  be  satisfied^  when  I  awake, 
with  thy  likeness."  Still,  let  us  see  whether  there  may 
not  be  gained  something  from  a  little  group  of  verses  in 
the  Apocalypse,  which  will  reward  our  study.  We  are 
certainly  all  agreed  upon  a  few  points. 

I.  For  example,  this :  Heaven  must  be  a  very  splen- 
did place,  when  one  really  does  get  there.  All  the  de- 
scriptions unite  in  exhibiting  the  brilliancy  of  the  city's 
adornment :  *'The  building  of  the  wall  of  it  was  of  jas- 
per ;  and  the  city  was  pure  gold,  like  unto  clear  glass. 
And  the  foundations  of  the  wall  of  the  city  were  gar- 
nished wuth  all  manner  of  precious  stones.  The  first 
foundation  was  jasper  ;  the  second,  sapphire ;  the  third,  a 
chalcedony  ;  the  fourth,  an  emerald  ;  the  fifth,  sardonyx  ; 

12* 


274  THE   HEAVENLY   CITY. 


Celestial  jewels.  The  London  painting. 

the  sixth,  sardius  ;  the  seventh,  chrysolite  ;  the  eighth, 
beryl ;  the  ninth,  a  topaz  ;  the  tenth,  a  chrysoprasus  ; 
the  eleventh,  a  jacinth  ;  the  twelfth,  an  amethyst.  And 
the  twelve  gates  were  twelve  pearls  ;  every  several  gate 
was  of  one  pearl  :  and  the  street  of  the  city  was  pure 
gold,  as  it  were  transparent  glass." 

Here  are  reflecting  surfaces,  and  shining  substances, 
and  radiant  materials  of  structure,  multiplied  in  ex- 
haustless  profusion,  each  calculated  to  catch  and  repeat 
the  extraordinary  light  which  falls  upon  them.  Like  a 
room  of  mirrors,  this  entire  abode  of  God  will  send 
back  the  images  of  his  glory.  What  a  flood  of  sunshine 
such  a  conception  flings  out  upon  the  glooms  of  our 
earthly  life  !  Indeed,  there  is  something  very  signifi- 
cant in  the  way  in  which  the  Scriptures  offer  these  pic- 
tures of  glittering  splendor  among  the  consolations  of 
spiritual  grace.  It  is  like  a  beautiful  setting  to  a  won- 
derfully precious  gem.  The  old  prophets  are  foremost 
in  this.  *'  O  thou  afflicted,  tossed  with  tempest,  and  not 
comforted,  behold,  I  will  lay  thy  stones  with  fair  col- 
ors, and  lay  thy  foundations  with  sapphires.  And  I  will 
make  thy  windows  of  agates,  and  thy  gates  of  carbun- 
cles, and  all  thy  borders  of  pleasant  stones." 

In  the  London  Exhibition  there  was  once  a  beautiful 
painting,  representing  a  mother  on  her  ^[nees  in  her 
desolate  chamber,  beside  the  body  of  her  little  child. 
Her  face  rose  to  just  such  a  height  that  she  looked  across 
the  edge  of  the  coffin  straight  toward  an  open  window, 
through  which  the  western  sun  was  streaming  rays  of 


THE  HEAVENLY  CITY.  2/5 

Mourning  all  ended.  )  Wider  worship  in  heaven. 

lustrous  twilight,  kindling  the  whole  sky  with  superna- 
tural silver,  purple,  violet,  and  gold.  Her  eyes  were 
arrested  with  the  wonderful  sunset ;  and  the  legend  un- 
derneath the  picture  was  what  perhaps  she  might  have 
been  repeating  to  herself :  ''  The  sun  shall  be  no  more 
thy  light  by  day  ;  neither  for  brightness  shall  the  moon 
give  light  unto  thee  :  but  the  Lord  shall  be  unto  thee 
an  everlasting  light,  and  thy  God  thy  glory;  thy  sun 
shall  no  more  go  down  ;  neither  shall  thy  moon  with- 
draw itself :  for  the  Lord  shall  be  thine  everlasting  light, 
and  the  days  of  thy  mourning  shall  be  ended." 

2.  Again,  we  are  agreed  on  this  :  religious  life  here 
fits  us  for  a  wider  and  grander  experience  of  worship  in 
heaven.  On  this  earth  it  seems  absolutely  necessary  for 
our  poor  weak  faith,  and  especially  our  dull  imagination, 
to  have  something  tangible  to  aid  in  ordinary  service  of 
God.  But  in  that  celestial  city  it  will  be  only  a  glad- 
ness to  see  Christ  face  to  face,  and  we  can  afford  to  dis- 
dain all  sensuous  emblems  and  helps:  "And  I  saw  no 
temple  therein  :  for  the  Lord  God  Almighty  and  the 
Lamb  are  the  temple  of  it." 

It  may  not  be  worth  while  to  call  our  churches  *'  tem- 
ples," but  we  certainly  do  need  edifices,  and  we  think 
they  ought  to  be  expensively  beautiful.  It  is  perhaps 
true  that  our  aesthetic  sense  may  be  made  tributary  to 
devotion  ;  at  any  rate,  one  w^ould  think  a  few  of  our 
buildings  might  be  put  to  better  use  by  proper  archi- 
tecture, so  that  they  would  lift  us  nearer  and  nearer  to 
heaven. 


276  THE   HEAVENLY   CITY. 

A  Canadian  church.  Luminous  color. 


Most  of  us  have  heard  of  that  fine  structure  in  a 
Canadian  city,  every  point  of  which  presses  upwards, 
and  teaches  a  lesson  as  it  rises.  The  foundation  must, 
of  course,  be  put  on  the  earthly  rock,  but  step  by  step 
every  line  of  the  plan  struggles  away  from  it.  The 
tower  grows  slender  as  it  goes  into  the  serener  air  ;  the 
steeple  surmounts  that,  till  it  is  ready  to  be  lost  in  a 
spire  ;  so  likewise  the  spire  soars  on  aloft  in  sweet  sun- 
shine until  it  is  crowned  by  the  figure  of  a  tall  angel  in 
Avhite  ;  and  the  angel  also  keeps  looking  upward,  and 
even  his  hand  is  extended,  and  the  slender  index-finger 
points  heavenward — heavenward — still  ! 

3.  Further,  we  are  all  agreed  in  this  :  the  supreme 
excellence  of  heaven  is  found  in  the  presence  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  whose  revelation  illu- 
mines it.  *'  And  the  city  had  no  need  of  the  sun, 
neither  of  the  moon,  to  shine  in  it  :  for  the  glory  of 
God  did  lighten  it,  and  the  Lamb  is  the  light  thereof." 

The  one  sight  to  be  seen  will  be  Immanuel  with  the 
many  brilliant  crowns  on  his  head,  and  the  rainbow  over 
his  throne.  It  cannot  be  possible  for  earthly  writers  to 
gather  more  figures  or  similitudes  of  speech  for  use  in 
description,  than  has  been  done  oftener  than  once  in  the 
Old  and  New  Testament,  just  to  show  radiancy  and  flash- 
ing of  luminous  color.  We  are  absolutely  ^bewildered 
to  know  what  jewels  are  meant  by  some  of  those  which 
are  mentioned  in  the  account  of  the  foundation  stones 
of  the  Celestial  City.  No  sun  is  needed,  no  moon  is 
needed  ;  indeed,  pains  are  taken  to  state  that  not  even 


THE   HEAVENLY   CITY.  2/7 

Number  of  inhabitants.  "  No  mean  city." 

a  "candle"  could  be  put  into  use.  For  the  light  all 
comes  from  one  who  calls  himself  *'  the  bright  and 
morning  star." 

4.  Next  to  this,  we  are  all  agreed  that  the  number  of 
heaven's  inhabitants  must  be  very  large.  Most  pitiful 
and  inadequate  is  the  notion  of  Christ's  atonement  which 
w^ould  make  the  achieved  results  of  it  diminutive.  What 
do  Christian  people  mean  when  they  preach  about  **the 
small  moiety  of  the  elect  ?  "  A  **  nation ''  may  be  born  in 
a  day,  when  God's  grace  is  in  exercise.  And  all  realms 
are  to  be  put  under  tribute  for  souls.  The  north  will 
give  up,  the  south  will  not  keep  back:  ''And  the  na- 
tions of  them  which  are  saved  shall  walk  in  the  light  of 
it :  and  the  kings  of  the  earth  do  bring  their  glory  and 
honor  into  it." 

All  ranks  and  conditions  w^ill  be  there  :  David  the 
king,  Joseph  the  ruler,  Philemon  the  master,  Onesimus 
the  slave.  When  the  apostle  is  telling  the  story  of 
Abraham's  faith,  he  takes  occasion  to  intimate  what  a 
blessed  issue  it  had  in  the  generations  following  : 
**  Therefore  sprang  there  even  of  one,  and  him  as  good 
as  dead,  so  many  as  the  stars  of  the  sky  in  multitude, 
and  as  the  sand  which  is  by  the  seashore  innumerable." 
We  need  not  belittle  our  inheritance,  nor  underrate  the 
companionship  we  shall  share  when  we  enter  into  it. 

Paul  once  said,  perhaps  a  little  proudly,  when  they 
challenged  him  concerning  Tarsus,  ''  I  am  a  citizen  of 
no  mean  city."  And  what  should  a  Christian  say  when 
talking  of  heaven  ?     Is  it  necessary  for  due    modesty 


27S  THE   HEAVENLY   CITY. 

Access  always  free.  Henry  Martyn, 

that  he  should  grow  deprecating,  and  speak  as  Lot  did 
of  Zoar,  '*  Is  it  not  a  little  one  ? " 

5.  Again  :  we  admit  and  proclaim  widely  that  access 
to  heaven  is  positively  free  at  all  times  to  all  persons 
who  will  come  into  it  in  the  right  way.  "  And  the  gates 
of  it  shall  not  be  shut  at  all  by  day :  for  there  shall  be 
no  night  there." 

One  word  here  used  settles  the  condition  of  admis- 
sion ;  it  is  the  "saved  "  who  are  welcomed.  Salvation  is 
the  theme  of  heavenly  songs.  Penitence  for  sin,  faith  in 
the  Saviour,  surrender  of  one's  life — these  are  the  steps 
of  the  redeemed  ones  coming  home.  They  involve  some 
measure  of  sacrifice.  One  must  cut  loose  from  a  fair 
world  around  him,  and  turn  his  hope  unto  Christ.  *'  If 
ye  then  be  risen  with  Christ,  seek  those  things  which  are 
above,  where  Christ  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  God." 

That  is  not  always  easy,  for  earth  is  near  and  heaven 
seems  far  off.  *'It  is  an  awful,  an  arduous  thing,"  wrote 
Henry  Martyn  from  his  field  of  mission  toil  to  dear 
friends  in  England,  ''to  root  out  every  affection  for 
earthly  things,  so  as  to  live  only  for  another  world." 
Such  conflict  is  not  unusual.  But  diligent  discipline 
can  do  much  to  relieve  it. 

6.  We  are  also  agreed  that  all  worthy  gains  of  this 
life  are  perpetuated  and  welcomed  in  the  other.  When 
Constantine  established  Constantinople  as  the  capital 
city  of  his  vast  empire,  he  beautified  it — indeed,  history 
says  he  almost  builded  it  new — out  of  all  the  other  chief 
towns  in  the  world  he  ruled.     He  took  pictures  and  stat- 


THE  HEAVENLY  CITY.  279 


Constantinople.  Earth's  "  bubbles/ 


ues,  columns  and  carvings  of  edifices,  and  pillars  and 
mosaics,  away  from  every  foreign  owner,  and  put  them 
in  his  metropolis.  He  forced  all  the  kings  of  the  earth 
he  had  conquered  to  contribute  the  very  best  they  had. 
That  may  have  seemed  hard  for  the  vanquished  in  those 
times.  But  here  we  see  that  the  Christian  is  only  in- 
vited to  add  his  gathered  treasures  to  his  own  home.  It 
is  the  privilege  of  believers  to  make  heaven  happier  : 
''And  they  shall  bring  the  glory  and  honor  of  the  na- 
tions into  it." 

What  are  the  true  honors  of  kings  ?  Surely,  not  these 
factitious  fames  and  titles,  these  monuments  and  col- 
umns and  arches,  of  which  they  seem  so  proud.  Croe- 
sus left  his  wealth  all  behind  him  ;  Nero  could  not  save 
his  palace  by  burning  it  up  ;  Cheops  gave  a  pyramid 
for  the  world's  riddle  ;  Pompey's  pillar  is  out  on  the 
lonely  hill  in  Alexandria  still ;  and  Cleopatra's  needle 
has  been  once  already  lost  at  sea.  *'The  earth  hath 
bubbles  as  the  water  hath,  and  these  be  of  them. "  What 
are  royal  believers  permitted  to  bear  away  with  them, 
and  contribute  to  the  joys  of  heaven  ? 

Our  acquisitions  of  worthy  knotvledge  may  go  along  with 
us  into  the  other  life.  Our  powers  of  investigation  will 
not  be  impaired  ;  and  we  shall  have  a  better  chance  for 
study  then  than  now. 

Our  memories  also  will  continue  active.  *' Son,  re- 
member." Zaccheus  will  not  forget  the  sycamore-tree 
he  climbed  in  order  to  see  Jesus  ;  and  Bartimeus  will 
often  think  of  the  ^ate  of  Jericho. 


28o  THE   HEAVENLY   CITY. 

*'  Clothed  upon."  Tlie  Waterloo  question. 

Our  affections  will  be  worth  saving,  and  they  will  add 
very  much  to  the  heavenly  enjoyment  for  most  of  us. 
We  shall  know  the  friends  that  went  away  from  us,  and 
they  will  be  glad  when  we  meet  them.  Heaven  is  to 
be  a  place  for  **  knitting  severed  friendships  up."  The 
parted  and  the  pure  shall  be  joined  together  again. 

This  must  be  what  the  apostle  means  when  he  says, 
*'  not  for  that  wx  \yould  be  unclothed,  but  clothed  upon." 
We  shall  lose  nothing  worth  keeping  ;  we  shall  gain 
much  better  worth  having.  The  inhabitants  of  that 
other  life  have  been  called  our  *' high-born  kinsmen." 
There  is  a  blood-relationship  between  us.  It  kindles  an 
enthusiasm  in  the  tamest  soul  to  remember  that  they 
most  likely  know  what  Vv^e  are  doing  here,  and  quite  ap- 
preciate all  that  is  honorable  and  valiant  and  true  in 
our  behavior.  So  it  is  well  to  refer  to  this  often.  *'  Our 
very  thoughts  are  heard  in  heaven."  What  will  be  the 
judgment  of  us  in  those  pure  minds  ?  On  the  eve  of  the 
battle  of  Waterloo,  it  is  related  that  Wellington  sent  all 
around  through  his  army  the  question,  ''What  w^ill  they 
think  of  us  to-morrow  in  England?" 

7.  Then,  finally,  we  are  agreed  that  everything  will 
be  excluded  from  heaven  which  will  bring  discomfort 
or  retain  taint  of  sin  :  ''And  there  shall  in  no  wise  enter 
into  it  anything  that  defileth,  neither  w^hatsopver  w^ork- 
eth  abomination,  or  maketh  a  lie  ;  but  they  which  are 
written  in  the  Lamb's  book  of  life."  This  is  the  official 
proclamation. 

There  is  something  quite  novel,  as  well  as  exceedingly 


THE  HEAVENLY   CITY.  28 1 

Negative  descriptions.  No  more  "  vigils.'* 

interesting,  in  these  negative  forms  of  presentation  we 
discover  in  the  Scriptures.  If  there  is  a  confessed  mys- 
tery in  the  statements  as  to  what  we  shall  find  in  the 
Celestial  City,  surely  we  ought  to  be  grateful  for  being 
told  so  plainly  what  w^ill  never,  never,  be  found  there  any 
more.  Take  away  from  our  earthly  lot  just  one  item, 
that  of  illness — undoubtedly  the  fruit  of  sin — and  how 
commonplace,  but  how  welcome,  is  the  verse  of  old 
prophecy:  ''And  the  inhabitant  shall  not  say,  I  am 
sick  :  the  people  that  dwell  therein  shall  be  forgiven 
their  iniquity." 

"  O  mother  !  "  said  a  crippled  boy,  when  they  talked 
to  him,  by  his  bedside  of  suffering,  concerning  the  heav- 
en to  which  they  hoped  he  would  go — ''O  mother! 
shall  I  be  straight  then  ? "  And  she  simply  quieted  him 
down  with  the  text :  "  Then  the  eyes  of  the  blind  shall 
be  opened,  and  the  ears  of  the  deaf  shall  be  unstopped. 
Then  shall  the  lame  man  leap  as  an  hart,  and  the  tongue 
of  the  dumb  sing." 

Remove  this  curse  of  deformity,  and  weak  will,  and 
diseased  body,  and  depraved  taste,  and  constitutional  in- 
firmity, and  oh,  how  much  goes  with  it !  Leave  sin  be- 
hind, too,  and  we  begin  to  breathe  freely.  No  more 
v/atching  ;  no  more  dreading ;  no  more  shames  in  the 
daytimes  ;  no  more  vigils  in  the  night ;  but  all  free  and 
safe  ever!  ''And  God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from 
their  eyes  ;  and  there  shall  be  no  .more  death,  neither 
sorrow,  nor  crying,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  pain  : 
for  the  former  things  are  passed  away." 


282  THE  HEAVENLY   CITY. 

A  western  city.  The  "  afternoon  "  land. 

In  a  word,  so  far  as  we  can  now  see,  the  new  life  is 
just  ordinary  human  life  with  a  new  heart ;  and  heaven 
is  just  this  worthy  existence  of  ours  with  all  its  blessed 
gains  and  enjoyments,  forever  rid  of  its  sufferings  and 
troubles.  Heaven  is  only  the  projection  of  the  best 
which  the  human  heart  can  conceive  into  an  unhindered 
experience  where  it  can  go  on  limitlessly  in  the  light. 

Once,  in  a  western  town,  they  told  us  that  the  beauty 
of  it  lay  in  its  suburbs  and  environs.  And  one  of  the 
enthusiastic  residents  remarked,  as  we  admired  the  main 
street  in  particular,  and  especially  commented  on  the 
fine  show  it  made  at  the  upper  end  upon  the  hill,  **  Oh, 
yes  !  it  is  much  more  beautiful  across  the  river  !  "  Then 
he  showed  us  how  beneath  steep  banks  a  deep  and  rapid 
stream  was  running  athwart  the  path  just  ahead.  But 
he  went  on  :  **  These  same  streets  are  continued  over  on 
the  other  side  ;  but  they  have  more  room  there  ;  so  the 
yards  are  finer,  and  the  fountains  are  loftier,  and  the 
edifices  are  more  substantial ;  indeed,  it  is  wonderfully 
beautiful  on  the  hillside  yonder,  especially  in  the  after 
J)art  of  the  day\  when  the  long  sunshine  is  falling  !  " 

Well,  then,  is  it  true  that  all  the  streets  of  this  life  are 
continued  in  the  other  across  the  dark  river  ?  Do  the 
gardens  grow  fairer,  and  the  fountains  finer,  as  the  im- 
mortal road  runs  on  ?  Is  it  going  ever  to  tje  said  of  us 
Christian  travelers,  as  the  Laureate  sings  of  those  whom 
only  his  imagination  saw  on  the  journey : 

**  In  the  afternoon  they  came  unto  a  land 
In  which  it  seemed  always  afternoon." 


XXV. 

THE   FINAL   PRAYER. 

He  which  testifieth  these  things  saith,  Surely  I  come  quick- 
ly ;  Amen.     Even  so,  cOxME,  Lord  ]e.s\js.— Revelation  22:  20. 

Any  one  who  stands  on  the  heights  overlooking  the 
sea  close  by  Sandy  Hook  will  be  struck  by  the  apparent 
hurry  and  huddling  together  of  the  vessels  as  they  push 
in  toward  the  narrows.  Wherries  and  skiffs,  steamers 
and  yachts,  all  the  craft,  large  and  little,  are  pressing 
eagerly  forward  as  if  to  make  the  harbor  earliest. 

The  same  picture  comes  to  one  who  watches  the  clos- 
ing in  of  Scripture  scenes  and  themes,  as  the  revelation 
of  God  reaches  its  conclusion.  There  is  certainly  a 
rapid  rushing  of  events,  a  swift  driving  together  of  di- 
rections, a  strange  repetitious  energy  of  expression  in 
the  promises,  all  calculated  to  fix  in  one's  mind  the 
thought  that  these  celestial  voices  are  soon  to  be  silent, 
and  the  great  book  from  heaven  is  to  receive  its  impres- 
sive **  finis." 

**  Even  so,  come.  Lord  Jesus,"  is  the  small  invo- 
cation just  before  the  benediction  which  dismisses  the 
universe  from  worshipfully  looking  upward  after  new 
disclosure.  Its  characteristic  force  as  a  prayer  does 
not  all  appear  at  once.  Certain  peculiarities  will  re- 
ward a  patient  study  of  its  meaning  and  pertinency. 


284  THE   FINAL  PRAYER. 

An  inspired  prayer.  Importunateness. 

I.  For  example,  it  is  a  prayer  offered  under  inspiration. 
It  was  conceived  and  lifted  by  the  beloved  disciple,  who 
once  lay  in  the  Saviour's  bosom  ;  he  would  know  how 
to  pray,  if  any  one  did. 

1.  How  brief  it  is  in  its  measure  !  Seven  words  :  one 
for  each  color  in  the  rainbow,  one  for  each  note  in  a 
song,  one  for  each  of  the  days  in  a  perfect  week  :  not  at 
all  too  much,  not  at  all  too  little.  All  the  pattern  pray- 
ers of  the  Bible  are  very  short.  *'  Lord,  save  us :  w^e 
perish  ! "  "  Remember  me  when  thou  comest  into  thy 
kingdom  !  "  "  O  that  Ishmael  might  live  before  thee  !  " 
"God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner  !  "  *^  I  Come  quickly  ; 
Amen.     Even  so,  come  !  " 

2.  How  comprehensive  it  is  in  its  doctrine  !  It  says, 
**  Lord,  come,"  for  John  knew  who  was  his  Master,  and 
was  certain  he  was  a  divine  being.  It  says,  ''Lord 
Jesus,"  for  John  knew  who  was  his  Redeemer,  and  un- 
derstood that  he  was  thoroughly  a  man.  It  says  in  the 
outset,  "  even  so,"  for  John  had  been  tossed  so  much  on 
the  turbulent  and  boisterous  seas  of  experience,  that  he 
had  learned  the  grace  of  acquiescence  perfectly.  It 
says,  ''come  quickly,"  for  John  remembered  many  a 
sweet  communion,  and  longed  once  more  to  have  his 
beloved  teacher  return  to  his  side  again. 

3.  How  importunate  it  is  in  its  spirit  ! ,  The  entire 
chapter  rings  with  that  one  word  "come."  The  Spirit 
says  it ;  the  Bride  says  it ;  and  whosoever  hears  the 
others  say  it,  is  to  say  it  himself.  One's  imagination  is 
arrested  ;  it  is  like  listening  to  those  slow,  sweet,  smooth 


THE   FINAL   PRAYER.  285 

Falling  chimes.  The  isle  Patmos. 

chimes  that  fall  from  a  neighboring  belfry,  stroke  by 
stroke,  as  the  evening  worshipers  move  tranquilly  to- 
ward the  door.  Slower  and  slov/er,  but  clearer  and 
clearer,  the  vibrations  seem  to  speak  to  us,  as  they  are 
growing  fewer  and  more  lingering,  with  an  increase  of 
pleading,  as  if  impatient  to  be  heard  and  heeded. 

4.  How  direct  it  is  in  its  address !  Evidently  John 
was  weary  and  growing  lonesome.  It  is  said  that  this 
wretched  island  of  Patmos  used  to  be  pleasanter  than  it 
is  now.  The  pilgrims  and  anchorites  of  the  middle 
ages  may  have  made  it  so  for  a  while.  Once  in  history 
it  was  called  **  Palmosa,"  or  the  Palmy  Isle  ;  there  is 
on  it  now  just  one  palm,  travelers  say,  and  that  is  in  a 
valley  which,  in  memory  of  the  apostle,  has  been  named 
the  "saint's  garden."  In  John's  time,  however,  it  de- 
served the  description  that  Suetonius  gives  to  it,  "a 
bleak  and  desolate  spot,  fit  for  banished  exiles."  And 
this  prayer  of  the  sad  and  lonely  man  shows  that  he  felt 
certain  that  only  the  company  of  the  Lord  Jesus  could 
enliven  a  neighborhood  so  forlorn  and  dull.  So  he  said 
"Come." 

There  cannot  be  any  objection  to  our  making  this  in- 
spired petition  our  pattern,  its  brevity  and  its  compre- 
hensiveness, its  importunity  and  its  directness,  all  being 
so  commendable.  There  are  moods  and  tenses  of  hu- 
man experience  for  which  it  is  fitted  well.  It  must  have 
sounded  sweetly  at  Patmos  when  the  wind  was  high, 
and  the  clouds  hung  low,  and  the  waves  were  moaning. 

II.  Observe,  in  the  second  place,  this' is  the  last  prayer 


286  THE  FINAL  PRAYER. 

Last  things.  The  temple  of  God's  word. 

in  the  Bible.  John  was  the  last  of  the  apostolic  band, 
and  this  was  certainly  the  last  prayer  he  ever  put  on  the 
unchanging  record. 

Last  things  always  have  great  significance  ;  the  last 
leaf  of  autumn,  or  the  last  bird  before  the  winter  snows 
come  ;  the  last  Indian  of  a  fading  race  ;  the  last  words 
of  a  friend,  the  last  caress  before  estrangement ;  the  last 
visit  of  New  Year's  ;  the  last  bill  a  spendthrift  flings 
away  from  his  scattered  fortune.  Our  imaginations 
sometimes  fasten  on  what  is  likely  to  be  on  ahead  ;  the 
last  Lord's  Day  for  any  one  of  us  ;  the  last  sermon  we 
shall  hear  then,  or  the  last  hymn  we  shall  help  to  sing. 
It  would  be  difficult  for  one  to  explain  just  why  these 
things  affect  him  so  mournfully. 

In  this  instance  the  impression  is  not  at  all  sad,  but 
the  rather  exhilarating  ;  for  we  have  a  kind  of  satisfied 
interest  in  a  completion  which  fitly  closes  any  great  en- 
terprise. We  like  what  is  well  done  clear  to  the  end. 
The  ancient  fathers  wept  for  very  joy  as  they  saw  the 
top-stone  of  the  temple  finished  at  last,  and  brought 
forth  into  its  place  with  shoutings  of  "Grace,  grace," 
unto  it.  And  he  must  be  a  dull  Christian,  who,  having 
watched  this  grand  beautiful  edifice  of  inspiration  rising 
slowly  but  surely  in  its  courses  of  Pentateuch,  prophecy, 
psalm,  proverb,  gospel,  epistle,  is  not  now  fairly  kin- 
dled into  enthusiasm  in  his  emotions  as  he  discovers 
how  fitly  such  a  wonderful  masterpiece  of  the  Apoca- 
lypse crowns  it  at  the  summit.  *'  The  law  of  the  Lord  is 
perfect."  • 


THE   FINAL    PRAYER.  28/ 

The  Bible  ends  with  prayer.  John's  old  age. 

And  how  fine  it  is  that  the  word  of  divine  grace  closes 
with  a  prayer — and  such  a  prayer  !  Around  through  all 
its  circles  of  intelligent  thought  runs  this  spirit  of  inspi- 
ration :  predictions,  and  songs,  and  apothegms,  and  rit- 
vials  ;  but  at  last,  rising  with  a  supreme  devotion,  as 
**fire  ascending  seeks  the  sun,"  it  calmly  turns  its  di- 
rection toward  the  Godhead  whence  it  had  its  source. 
*'Inthe  beginning,  God:"  so  the  Scripture  starts  out 
in  its  revelation  from  heaven,  and  it  continues  with  the 
inspiration  of  God's  Spirit  through  both  Testaments  :  so 
here  it  ends  with  a  call  for  another  dispensation  of  God's 
Son  :  **  Even  so,  come,  Lord  Jesus  !  " 

III.  Observe,  once  more,  this  is  a  prayer  raised  fy  a/i 
aged  Christian ;  indeed,  it  is  the  final  act  of  his  honored 
public  life. 

It  is  well  known  to  us  all  that  the  beloved  disciple 
lingered  in  this  world  long  after  all  his  comrades  were 
dead.  When  this  Apocalypse  was  written,  sixty  years 
had  elapsed  since  Christ  had  ascended  from  the  Mount 
of  Olives.  Through  all  John's  rough  vicissitudes  he 
had  been  marvelously  spared  for  fresh  service.  He 
came  to  so  great  an  age  at  last,  that  the  foolish  story 
was  revived  concerning  him  which  he  had  hoped  for- 
ever to  silence  when  he  added  an  extraordinary  chapter 
to  his  gospel.  There  had  been  reported  for  some  time 
among  the  churches  the  absurd  tradition  that  our  Lord 
actually  promised  him  immortality.  This  he  had  taken 
pains  to  contradict  at  the  time.  *'  Then  went  this  say- 
ing abroad  among  the  brethren,  that  that  disciple  should 


288  THE   FINAL   PRAYEl 


False  report  about  John.  Christ's  ascension. 

not  die  ;  yet  Jesus  said  not  unto  him,  Fie  shall  not  die  ; 
but,  If  I  will  that  he  tarry  till  I  come,  what  is  that  to 
thee  ?  This  is  the  disciple  which  testifieth  of  these 
things,  and  wrote  these  things  :  and  we  know  that  his 
testimony  is  true." 

Of  such  a  mysterious  remark,  made  by  our  Saviour, 
John  would  of  course  retain  a  most  vivid  remembrance. 
It  did  not  say  that  Jesus  would  return  before  he  should 
die  ;  but  it  did  not  deny  him  the  privilege  of  hoping 
such  might  be  the  case.  This  unusual  length  of  days 
may  have  encouraged  him  much.  It  is  difficult  to  de- 
cide what  were  the  real  views  of  the  apostles  as  to  our 
Lord's  advent.  John  certainly  believed  that  Jesus  was 
coming  back  some  time,  or  he  never  would  have  prayed, 
**  Even  so,  come.  Lord  Jesus." 

He  was  not  praying  for  mere  death.  Job  once  said  : 
"  Oh  that  God  would  grant  me  the  thing  that  I  long  for, 
even  that  he  would  let  loose  his  hand  and  cut  me  off  ! " 
That  is  a  very  different  petition  from  this.  The  patri- 
arch longed  to  find  death  ;  the  apostle  may  have  longed 
to  avoid  death,  by  hastening  the  revelation  of  his  be- 
loved Lord  and  Master  so  that  he  might  see  him  again 
in  the  flesh. 

He  had  reason  enousfh  to  believe  this  to  be  a  lawful 
prayer.  When  he  with  the  others  stood  Iqoking  after 
Jesus  as  he  rose  into  the  parted  skies,  two  men  in  white 
apparel  suddenly  exclaimed  :  **  Ye  men  cvf  Galilee,  why 
stand  ye  gazing  up  into  heaven  ?  this  same  Jesus 
w^hich   is   taken   up   from    you   into   heaven,   shall   so 


THE   FINAL   PRAYER.  289 

Fontenelle's  remark.  Prayer  on  a  promise. 

come  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen  him  go  into 
heaven." 

Surely,  every  aged  believer  should  be  content  to  say, 
"  Thy  will  be  done  ;"  but  there  could  be  no  more  ap- 
propriate prayer  for  one  well  on  in  years  than  this.  No 
one  wants  the  pains  of  death,  for  their  own  sake,  if  he 
could  be  delivered  from  tliem.  Better  by  far  would  it 
be  for  him  and  for  all  of  us  if  we  could  be  among  the 
company  who  shall  escape  dying  altogether,  and  be 
found  alive  at  Christ's  coming,  and  be  caught  up  into 
the  air  at  his  right  hand  !  If  he  is  ready,  why  should 
not  he  want  to  be  forever  with  the  Lord  ?  *'  I  am  about 
to  decamp,"  said  the  aged  Fontenelle  ;  **  and  I  have  sent 
all  my  heavy  baggage  on  before  me  already  !  " 

IV.  Observe,  in  the  fourth  place,  this  is  a  prayer  on 
a  promise  :  nay,  more  ;  it  is  a  promise  changed  into  a 
prayer. 

Suppose  a  skilful  archer  should  catch  a  flying  arrow 
in  the  air  before  it  fell,  and  fixing  it  in  his  bow  instantly 
should  send  it  back  whence  it  came  ;  this  would  be  very 
much  what  Matthew  Henry  says  in  his  quaint,  forcible 
way  :  *'  Whatever  God  gives  you  in  any  promise,  be  sure 
to  send  back  to  him  in  a  prayer." 

Note  the  language  of  this  passage  of  Scripture  just  as 
it  is  in  our  version  :  **  He  which  testifieth  these  things 
saith,  Surely  I  come  quickly  ;  Amen.  Even  so,  come, 
Lord  Jesus."  One  little  felicity  among  the  rest  is  lost 
in  the  rendering.  The  particle  of  asseveration  in  each 
instance  used  is  the  same.  The  word  rendered  **  surely  " 
13 


290  THE.  FINAL  PRAYER. 

"  Surely  "  and  "  even  so."  Prayer  from  experience. 

is  the  exact  word  rendered  ''even  so."  That  mere  vo- 
cable of  this  beautiful  language  is  like  a  ring  of  gold  in 
which  the  promise  and  the  prayer  are  linked  together. 
Jesus  says,  *'  I  come  surely  ; "  so  John  says,  *'  Oh,  surely 
then,  come.  Lord  Jesus,  come  quickly  !  " 

V.  Observe,  still  further,  that  this  \Y2iS  a  player  founded 
in  a  long  i^cach  of  extended  experience.  There  is  no  other 
way  of  accounting  for  its  daring  intelligence  and  impas- 
sioned pleading. 

John  had  once  been  at  Jesus'  side  in  the  flesh.  And 
now  for  some  wxeks  he  had  been  looking  into  heaven 
through  an  open  door  of  pearl.  From  his  Gospel  and 
Epistles  we  easily  infer  that  his  was  a  nature  of  pecu- 
liarly penetrating  and  delicate  mold.  He  had  had  ex- 
ceedingly rare  opportunities  of  increase  in  learning  and 
growth  in  grace.  So  v/e  are  rightly  led  to  conjecture 
that  he  was  proba.bly  one  of  the  loftiest  and  most  spirit- 
ual Christians  that  ever  lived.  Of  all  who  are  men- 
tioned in  the  New  Testament  church,  he  seems  the 
m-ost  profoundly  versed,  the  most  deeply  read,  in  the 
wonderful  revelations  of  divine  things.  He  had  his 
choice  among  them  always. 

Now  here  we  find  this  favored  man  suddenly  prompted 
to  raise  his  last  mortal  prayer.  The  crowning  moment 
of  his  life  is  reached.  Gazing*  straight  into  the  open 
door  of  God's  own  heaven,  he  is  invited  and  inspired  to 
make  his  final  request.  What  Vv^ill  he  ask  ?  Shall  he 
seek  more  information  concerning  the  divine  purpose  ? 
Can  he  know  now,  if  he  will,  the  story  of  the  angels, 


THE   FINAL   PRAYER.  29 1 

John's  highest  wish.  Rutherford's  last  words. 

their  revolt,  and  their  fall  ?  Is  it  within  his  reach  at 
this  supreme  moment  to  learn  where  Moses  was  buried, 
and  whither  Elijah  went  in  the  whirlwind  ?  Can  he 
hear  some  more  singing  ?  Can  he  see  some  more  shin- 
ing of  seraphim's  Avings  ?  Can  he  talk  some  more  with 
the  elders,  wearing  golden  crowns  ?  Is  it  true  that  all 
heaven  is  wide  open  to  this  beloved  disciple,  and  he 
may  satisfy  his  wistfulness  or  his  curiosity  ?  What  will 
he  want  more  ?  With  all  his  vast  expericncej  what  is 
he  going  to  seek  in  the  last  prayer  he  lifts  before  he 
enters  heaven  ? 

Nothing:  only  a  clearer  sight  of  his  Lord  Jesus  Christ  I 
Only  a  nearer  companionship  with  his  Redeemer.  Not 
one  of  the  glittering  glories  of  that  Celestial  City  be- 
sides ;  not  one  of  the  tender  memories  of  earth  besides  ; 
only  this  :  **  Come,  Lord  Jesus  !  " 

How  high  a  soaring  faith  may  go,  even  here  on  the 
low  earthly  footstool  of  God's  majesty  !  How  freely  a 
bright  experience  of  the  new  life  may  gaze  into  the  in- 
effable mysteries  of  eternity !  And  yet  this  is  all  it 
comes  to,  ''Give  me  now  a  full,  fresh  revelation  of 
Jesus  Christ !  My  eyes  would  see  the  King  in  his 
beauty,  and  behold  the  land  that  is  far  off  !  Whom  have 
I  in  heaven  but  thee  ?  and  there  is  none  upon  earth  that 
I  desire  besides  thee.     Show  me,  O  Lord,  thy  glory  ! " 

**  The  bride  eyes  not  her  garments,  but  her  dear  bridegroom's  facej 
I  will  not  gaze  on  glory,  but  on  my  Lord  of  grace; 
Not  on  the  crown  he  giveth,  but  on  the  pierced  hand — 
The  Lamb  is  all  the  glory  of  Immanuel's  land  !" 


292  THE   FINAL   PRAYER. 

The  test  prayer  for  all.  "Come,  Lord  Jesus  ! '» 

Two  simple  reflections  seem  to  have  place  here,  now 
that  our  study  has  covered  the  meaning  of  this  wonder- 
ful petition. 

1.  A  prayer  like  this  is  singularly  appropriate  as  a  test 
in  every  Christian's  time  of  self-examination.  "Yet  a 
little  while,  and  he  that  shall  come  will  come,  and  will 
not  tarry."  Are  we  individually  ready  to  meet  him? 
Are  we  actually  praying  for  his  appearance  ?  Does  it 
frighten  us  to  think  he  may  be  here  very  soon  ? 

2.  A  prayer  like  this  is  exactly  the  prayer  for  every 
unconverted  person  to  offer.  It  is  a  prayer  founded  on 
a  promise.  Let  us  look  carefully  at  the  surprising  dia- 
logue which  is  recorded  in  this  same  chapter.  Jesus 
speaks  first:  "And,  behold,  I  come  quickly;  and  my 
reward  is  with  me,  to  give  every  man  according  as  his 
work  shall  be." 

Then  we  hear  the  responses  at  once  :  "And  the  Spirit 
and  the  bride  say,  Come.  And  let  him  that  heareth,  say. 
Come.  And  let  him  that  is  athirst,  come  :  and  whoso- 
ever will,  let  him  take  the  w^ater  of  life  freely." 

To  whom  does  the  Spirit  say.  Come  ?  To  w^hom  does 
the  Bride  say  in  the  same  word.  Come  ?  To  whom  is 
he  that  heareth  the  Spirit  and  the  Bride  saying  Come 
also  to  say.  Come  ?  These  prayers  are  addressed  not  to 
sinners,  but  to  Christ — Come,  Lord  Jesus !  But  now 
note  that  right  in  the  middle  of  the  sentence  the  sense 
changes:  "  Come,  Lord  Jesus  !  And  w^hosoever  will, 
let  him  come  ! "  That  is,  let  any  one  who  will,  come  to 
the  Lord  Jesus.     So  -when  a  man  prays  for  the  Saviour, 


THE  FINAL  PRAYER.  293 

The  last  benediction.  Four  books  with  a  curse. 

the  Saviour  is  on  the  way.  Here  is  the  prayer  for  all. 
Come  to  my  heart,  and  dwell  there.  Come  to  my  home, 
and  rule  there.  Come  to  this  poor  world,  and  relieve  it 
of  sins.  Come  to  thine  own  people  who  are  waiting. 
Thou  hast  said  thou  wilt  come  :  even  so.  Lord  Jesus, 
come  quickly. 

And  now  the  last  prayer  in  the  Bible  is  fitly  followed 
by  the  last  benediction.  "  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  be  with  you  all.  Amen."  It  is  worth  noticing 
that  John  pronounces  here  only  the  name  of  the  Second 
Person  in  the  adorable  Trinity.  In  this  he  follows  Paul, 
who  gave  a  like  announcement :  "  Unto  them  that  look 
for  him  shall  he  appear  the  second  time,  without  sin,  unto 
salvation  : "  and  then  supplemented  it  with  a  like  bless- 
ing :  *'  Grace  be  with  all  them  that  love  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  in  sincerity." 

There  are  four  books  in  the  Old  Testament  which 
end  with  a  curse  :  Isaiah,  Lamentations,  Ecclesiastes^ 
and  Malachi.  The  Hebrew  scribes  were  always  accus- 
tomed to  repeat  the  verse  just  before  the  last  in  these 
cases  so  as  to  close  their  reading  with  something  better 
than  a  malediction.  But  the  New  Testament  needs  no 
such  relief.  The  last  vision  of  Jesus  that  John  saw 
showed  him  with  his  hands  outstretched  for  a  blessing 
at  Bethany :  and  the  last  word  he  speaks  for  Jesus  at 
Patmos  is  the  benediction  he  left. 


XXVI. 

THE   TEACHER   TAUGHT. 

Thou  therefore  which  teachest  another,  teachest  thou  not 
THYSELF  ? — Romans  2  :  21. 

In  his  conversation  with  Nicodemiis  our  Saviour 
enunciated  the  principle  to  which  all  Christian  useful- 
ness must  eventually  be  referred  ;  namely,  that  religious 
instruction,  in  order  to  be  effective,  must'  grow  up  out 
of  one's  personal  experience.  A  careful  exposition  of 
the  passage  from  which  our  text  is  taken  will  show  that 
it  offers  likewise  an  illustration  of  the  same  rule. 

The  model  Pharisee  of  primitive  times  imagined  he 
was  reaching  the  ultimate  height  of  excellence  when  he 
could  call  himself  a  Jew ;  he  asserted  for  himself  the 
most  edifying  orthodoxy  ;  he  presented  his  life  as  the 
pattern  of  flawless  morality  and  eminent  devotion  ;  he 
claimed  extraordinary  keenness  in  discrimination,  ap- 
proving only  v/hat  was  excellent  ;  he  contemplated 
himself  as  sublimely  equal  to  any  exigency  of  public 
station  ;  he  could  inform  the  ignorant,  illumine  the 
darkened,  give  counsel  to  bewildered  adults,  and  help 
forward  untaught  children,  being  fully  conversant  with 
all  the  ritual  and  all  the  creed. 

Yet  with  all  these  assumptions  the  apostle  seem.s  to 
have  discovered  that  which  led  him  to  rate  such  a  crca- 


THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT.  295 

Religious  instruction.  Living  experience. 

ture  as  a  mere  spiritual  quack  ;  and  he  here  denounces 
him  with  terrible  violence.  This  man,  so  earnest  against 
thieving,  had  a  touch  of  dishonesty  ;  so  stern  in  press- 
ing the  penalties  of  the  seventh  commandment,  had 
some  sins  which  would  look  ill  under  scrutiny.  In  a 
word,  he  was  instructing  others  with  no  v/ord  for  him- 
self. And,  again,  with  great  detail  of  illustration  so  as 
not  to  be  misunderstood,  St.  Paul  reiterates  the  grand 
principle  of  the  Gospel :  religious  instruction  is  to  he  in- 
dorsed by  the  living  experience  of  the  instructor. 

This  is  the  theme  upon  which  I  propose  now  to  ad- 
dress my  fellow-workers  in  the  Sunday-school.  A  few 
general  considerations  wuU  render  the  point  sufficiently 
clear. 

I.  Consider,  first,  the  great  common  need  under  which 
humanity  lies.  It  has  pleased  God  to  make  men  instru- 
ments of  good  to  each  other.  Hence  the  proclamation 
of  the  gospel  is  necessarily  experimental.  No  con- 
verted man  has  really  anything  more  to  say  than  this  : 
*'  Come  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God,  and  I  will  de- 
clare what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul." 

There  is  singular  advantage  in  this  method,  if  only 
faithfully  carried  ©ut.  It  invokes  all  the  power  of  sym- 
pathy. It  renders  one  man  influential  over  many.  It 
saves  material.  It  stimulates  exertion.  Men  are  always 
moved  to  action  in  their  own  behalf  when  they  find 
others,  once  confessedly  in  the  same  category,  now  re- 
lating and  commending  the  means  of  their  extrication. 
Naaman  was  just  the  person  to  tell  lepers  of  the  prophet 


296  THE   TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

"  Physician,  heal  thyself."  Conscience  mysterious. 

in  Samaria,  who  had  bidden  him  go  wash  in  the  Jordan. 
Bartimeus  was  just  the  right  one  to  lead  blind  men  to 
Jesus,  who  had  opened  his  eyes.  Hence,  it  is  perfectly 
natural  that  wc  demand  of  him  who  teaches  us  that  he 
should  first  have  felt  the  truth  he  proffers,  that  he  should 
have  experienced  the  good  he  promises,  that  he  should 
have  obeyed  the  command  he  is  urging.  We  instinct- 
ively question  the  right  of  any  individual  to  address  us 
upon  those  grand  matters  of  personal  salvation,  unless 
he  can  say  as  Christ  did,  ''We  speak  that  we  do  know, 
and  testify  that  v/e  have  seen."  He  is  in  as  great  peril 
as  we  are  ;  he  is  in  as  much  need  as  we  are  ;  and  we 
say,  ''  Physician,  heal  thyself  !  " 

H.  Consider,  in  the  second  place,  the  aim  of  all  reli- 
gious instruction.  The  conscience  must  be  reached,  and 
through  its  monitions  the  entire  life  must  be  influenced, 
or  else  all  teaching  is  wasted.  And  with  unregenerate 
people,  conscience  is  seared  more  or  less  in  every  case 
where  the  soul  has  so  far  passed  from  mere  infancy  as 
to  attain  the  exercise  of  free  will.  Great  ingenuity  is 
required  in  order  to  reach  it ;  something  more  than  in- 
genuity is  required  in  order  to  arouse  it.  Even  then  it 
is  often  misunderstood. 

Nothing  appears  so  mysterious  as  the  forms  of  opera- 
tion which  this  inner  monitor  chooses.  Sometimes  it 
seems  to  render  a  man  harder  and  more  violent ;  and 
yet  at  that  very  wildest  moment  he  is  nearer  yielding 
than  ever  before.  Sometimes  it  melts  a  man  into  deep 
emotion  ;  and  yet  we  painfully  discover  afterward  that 


THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT.  297 

Faces  in  water.  Scriptural  variety. 

this  has  been  mere  ebullition  of  excited  feeling.  The 
main  question  to  be  answered  with  all  teachers  is  this  : 
How  may  we  learn  to  discriminate  in  these  confusing 
manifestations  ? 

The  answer  is  much  easier  than  many  are  inclined  to 
suppose.  We  cannot  grow  skilful  in  distinguishing 
these  external  shows,  without  diligent  studies  of  our 
own  internal  experience.  Conscience  must  be  watched 
in  its  working  within  our  hearts.  *'  As  in  water,  face  an- 
swereth  to  face  ;  so  the  heart  of  man  to  man."  But  face 
does  not  answer  to  face  exactly ;  features  of  children 
differ,  and  expressions  of  countenance  are  flitting  and 
fitful.  Still,  the  number  and  the  name  of  the  linea- 
ments are  on  every  face  the  same.  On  general  princi- 
ples, that  truth  is  most  effective,  which,  having  proved 
itself  forceful  in  reaching  our  own  consciences,  goes 
from  its  success  there  directly  and  unhindered  upon  the 
intrenchments  of  another.  And  let  it  wear  all  its  awful 
power  undisturbed  ;  when  it  has  the  divine  doctrine  of 
repentance  to  utter,  it  would  be  folly  to  change  even  its 
raiment  of  camel's  hair,  or  cover  the  coarseness  of  the 
leathern  girdle  about  its  loins. 

III.  Consider,  again,  the  variety  of  forms  employed  in 
Scripture  instruction.  "  All  Scripture  is  given  by  inspi- 
ration of  God,  and  is  profitable  for  doctrine,  for  reproof, 
for  correction,  for  instruction  in  righteousness  ;  that  the 
man  of  God  may  be  perfect,  thoroughly  furnished  unto 
all  good  works."  But  then,  how  much  there  is  of  it! 
One  becomes  bewildered  and  embarrassed  in  the  midst  of 
13* 


298  THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

Sailors'  medicine-chest.  Testing  one's  drugs. 

such  riches.  There  is  room  for  any  amount  of  skill  in 
discriminating  what  doctrine  or  what  principle  or  what 
precept  to  apply  in  each  given  case  to  insure  most  good, 
and  avert  all  evil. 

Now,  it  is  no  reproach  for  me  to  utter,  w^hen  I  assert 
that  many  of  our  Sunday-school  teachers  are  at  a  loss 
here.  Are  there  none,  even  in  this  day  of  light,  who 
turn  over  the  pages  of  God's  word  helplessly  in  search 
of  some  reply  to  an  inquiring  soul  ?  When  the  tossed 
world  is  drifting,  and  a  passenger  lies  at  the  point  of 
death,  are  there  none  who  hurry  boldly  to  the  Bible,  as 
a  sailor  to  the  medicine-chest ;  and  yet  stand  appalled 
at  the  formidable  array  of  spiritual  drugs,  any  one  of 
which  possibly  might  be  helpful  or  hurtful,  if  only  they 
could  know  which  ?  How  can  we  learn  what  truth  to 
employ  or  what  phases  of  truth  to  present  ?  There  surely 
can  be  but  one  reply  to  this  question. 

Let  the  Scriptures  be  studied  expei'un&ntally.  Let  the 
Christian  teacher  re-work  every  principle  he  offers  to 
others,  first  into  his  own  mind,  and  out-work  it  into  his 
own  life.  It  will  not  be  long  before  he  will  have  gone 
over  most  of  the  moods  and  tenses  of  religious  feeling 
he  will  meet.  It  might  not  be  safe  that  every  physician 
try  the  effect  of  his  prescriptions  upon  himself  first ;  but 
for  spiritual  cures  there  is  no  process  that  can  be  more 
confidently  commended.  '^  Out  of  the  abundance  of  the 
heart  the  mouth  speaketh." 

IV.  Consider,  furthermore,  tJie  power  of  a  godly  exam^ 
pie.     The  common  law  of  influence  cannot  be  expected 


THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT.  299 

"  Living  epistles."  Inconsistency  betrays. 

to  fail,  just  because  the  force  exerted  has  in  some  cases 
become  salutary.  The  habit  of  the  human  heart  is  in- 
veterate. Men  are  imitative,  and  in  nothing  so  much  as 
religious  observance.  Moreover,  they  insist  upon  iden- 
tifying a  moral  teacher  with  what  he  teaches.  Espe- 
cially under  the  gospel  will  they  have  it  that  Christians 
shall  incarnate  the  truth  they  urge  on  others,  and  shall 
become  the  personal  embodiment  of  it  with  all  its  pre- 
dicted results.  They  will  not  suffer  a  limping  man  to 
propose  an  effective  cure  for  lameness. 

Bear  in  mind  that  the  world  has  this  much  of  a  show 
of  unusual  reason  in  the  case  of  the  followers  of  Christ ; 
he  expressly  taught  that  they  should  be  accepted  as 
illustrations  and  exemplifications  of  the  Gospel.  The 
force  of  one  sentence  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  turns 
upon  the  insignificant  word,  ^^  So.'*  *' Let  your  light 
so  shine  before  men,  that  they  may  see  your  good  works, 
and  glorify  your  Father  which  is  in  heaven."  **  If, 
therefore,  the  light  that  is  in  thee  be  darkness,  how  great 
is  that  darkness  !  "  In  like  manner,  the  apostles  taught, 
"Ye  are  living  epistles,  known  and  read  of  all  men." 

Hence  there  can  be  no  inconsistency  so  utter  as  an 
inconsistent  Christian  teacher  presents.  There  can  no 
failure  be  more  ridiculous  in  the  eyes  of  a  ribald  world 
than  that  of  a  man  who  urges  a  truth  and  lives  a  lie. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  whenever  fully  possessed  of  the 
power  of  the  gospel,  pervaded  with  its  spirit,  and  ra- 
diant with  its  light,  a  grand  life  goes  about  doing  good, 
that  life  has  a  majestic  driving  force  to  it  almost  unlim- 


300  THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

A  good  man's  shadow.  A  lens  of  ice. 

ited.  Men  bend  subdued  to  an  influence  which  they 
cannot  comprehend,  but  which  they  know  is  safe,  and 
which  they  feel  they  can  trust  implicitly.  Finer  picture 
of  human  greatness  there  is  not  in  the  Bible  than  that 
of  Simon  Peter,  when  the  multitudes  brought  out  the 
sick  on  couches,  that  they  might  lay  them  where  at  least 
his  shadow  could  fall  on  them.  Oh  !  believe  me,  this 
poor  world  has  been  deceived  cruelly  a  great  many 
times,  but  it  is  yet  intelligent  enough  to  recognize  its 
best  benefactors.  There  is  no  one  thing  it  loves  more 
to  abide  under  than  a  good  man's  shadow — the  only 
shadow  on  this  planet  that  renders  it  more  luminous 
except  the  shadow  of  the  Almighty  wing. 

V.  Consider,  in  the  fifth  place,  the  law  of  the  Holy 
Spirifs  action.  Truth  is  propagated  not  by  transmission 
through  mere  symbols,  but  by  radiation  through  con- 
ductors in  contact. 

The  lens  of  a  burning-glass  will  not  only  suffer  the 
free  passage  of  the  sun's  rays,  but  will  condense  and 
concentrate  them,  until  the  focus  they  fall  upon  bursts 
into  flame  ;  meanwhile  the  lens  itself  will  remain  per- 
fectly cool.  Wonderful  experiments  of  this  sort  have 
been  performed  with  even  a  lens  of  ice,  which  kindled 
a  fire  and  continued  unmelted.  You  can  find  nothing, 
liowever,  m  religious  matters  to  which  this  phenomenon 
would  answer.  The  torch,  not  the  burning-glass,  is  the 
emblem  of  spiritual  life  ;  it  flames  while  it  illumines, 
and  is  warmed  as  it  sets  on  fire.  He  influences  others 
most  who  has  been  nearest  in  contact  with  Christ. 


THE  TEACHER   TAUGHT.  30I 

The  Holy  Spirit's  indwelling.  A  sealed  book. 

Thus  the  Holy  Ghost  becomes  an  indweller.  This  is 
the  meaning  of  the  word  spirituality ;  it  signifies  the 
presence  of  the  divine  Spirit.  And  there  surely  remains 
no  ignorance  in  any  mind  as  to  the  absolute  necessity 
of  his  presence  in  order  to  all  Christian  usefulness. 
Without  him  we  can  do  nothing.  **If  any  man  have 
not  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  he  is  none  of  his."  No  reli- 
gious teacher  can  give  more  than  he  gets,  nor  commu- 
nicate more  than  he  possesses.  I  will  not  deny  that  the 
Holy  Ghost  sometimes  works  immediately  upon  the 
human  heart ;  what  I  urge  now  is  merely  that  when  he 
acts  upon  another  heart  through  ours,  he  does  it  by  en- 
tering abidingly  into  ours.  And  ordinarily  he  influences 
the  conscience  next  to  the  teacher's,  by  moving  the  con- 
science of  the  teacher.  Thus  the  efficient  impulse  is 
seen  to  grow  up  out  of  experience. 

Whichever  way  we  look,  then,  we  reach  the  same  con- 
clusion. The  heart  lies  behind  the  hand  which  proffers 
religious  truth.  The  practical  importance  of  this  prin- 
ciple cannot  be  over-estimated.  Let  us  now  search  for 
points  of  contact  which  it  finds  in  Sunday-schools. 

I.  We  learn  here  the  proper  use  to  make  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. All  religious  instruction  must  be  received  ex- 
perimentally. Thus  the  Bible  becomes  personal  in 
every  one  of  its  utterances.  How  is  it  now?  *'The 
vision  of  all  is  become  unto  you  as  the  words  of  a  book 
that  is  sealed,  which  men  deliver  to  one  that  is  learned, 
saying,  Read  this,  I  pray  thee  :  and  he  saith,  I  cannot ; 
for  it  is  sealed  :  and  the  book  is  delivered  to  him  that 


302  THE   TEACHER   TAUGHT. 

Geographical  fact.  Legh  Richmond's  remark. 

is  not  learned,  saying,  Read  this,  I  pray  thee  :  and  he 
saith,  I  am  not  learned."  What  is  this  that  renders  the 
learned  and  the  unlearned  together  so  at  fault  ?  Surely 
not  want  of  education,  but  want  of  experience. 

It  may  be  worth  knowing,  as  a  geographical  fact, 
that  there  is  no  water  in  the  Kidron  valley  save  after  a 
shower  ;  it  may  be  important  to  learn,  as  a  historic  fact, 
that  Capernaum  was  located  at  Khan  Minyeh  ;  but  this 
is  not  what  is  going  to  save  souls.  We  need  to  read  the 
divine  word  with  a  deeper  sense  of  its  spiritual  meaning. 
We  must  transmute  facts  into  principles  ;  we  must  in- 
carnate doctrine  in  daily  action  ;  we  must  embody  truth 
in  life  ;  we  must  reduce  vague  information  to  vital  and 
available  help. 

2.  We  learn  to  distinguish  between  gift  and  grace. 
Mere  intellectual  gift  sometimes  even  hinders  grace. 
**  Christ,"  said  Legh  Richmond,  **may  be  crucified  be- 
tween classics  and  mathematics."  It  is  not  our  want  of 
aptitudes  for  doing  good  which  stands  in  our  way,  half 
so  much  as  it  is  our  want  of  communion  with  God. 
The  rule  is,  *'  Oh  !  taste  and  see  that  the  Lord  is  good  !  " 
Out  of  this  experimental  acquaintance  with  truth  grows 
our  power  fitly  to  offer  it.  Only  thus  can  we  learn  to 
recommend  the  various  viands  on  the  table  of  the  gos- 
pel feast.  Scholarship  becomes  a  means  to  an  end.  It 
is  not  the  show  of  splendid  attainments,  but  the  hidden 
force  of  piety  underlying  them,  which  affects  the  souls 
we  hope  to  influence. 

The  gospel  light  is  much  like  the  solar   light ;    its 


THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT.  303 

Chemical  ray  of  the  spectrum.  Teachers  in  black. 

beauty  is  not  its  efficiency.  You  may  divide  the  sun- 
beam into  seven  beautiful  colors,  and  not  one  alone  nor 
all  together  will  imprint  an  image  on  a  daguerreotype 
plate.  Just  outside  the  spectrum,  in  the  dark,  there  is 
one  entirely  invisible  ray,  called  the  chemical  ray,  which 
does  all  the  work.  No  man  ever  saw  it,  no  man  ever 
felt  it ;  and  yet  this  it  is  which  bleaches  and  blackens  a 
dull  surface  into  figures  of  loveliness  and  life.  I  care 
not  how  luminous  a  man's  personal  or  intellectual  qual- 
ities may  be  ;  if  he  lacks,  amid  the  showy  beams  that 
are  shining,  this  one  which  is  viewless — this  efficient  but 
inconspicuous  beam  of  spiritual  experience — all  his  en- 
deavors will  surely  prove  inoperative  for  good. 

3.  We  learn  here  the  advantage  of  seasons  of  disci- 
pline. In  all  the  round  of  God's  dealing  with  his  chil- 
dren, there  is  nothing  like  suffering  as  an  educator.  It 
deepens  and  widens  and  swells  the  volume  of  Christian 
experience,  so  that  the  simplest  utterance  is  made  effec- 
tive. Ah  !  how  fine  is  the  promise  for  good  that  is  com- 
ing, when  one  wearing  habiliments  of  mourning  enters 
a  Sunday-school  with  the  w^ish  for  a  class  to  teach  ! 
"  He  that  goeth  forth  and  weepeth,  bearing  precious 
seed,  shall,  doubtless,  come  again  with  rejoicing,  bring- 
ins^  his  sheaves  with  him." 

Anything  that  loosens  the  hold  of  the  soul  on  earthly 
things,  and  just  shuts  it  up  to  God,  is  valuable  ;  but,  as  a 
preparation  for  usefulness,  is  priceless.  Any  man  ex- 
pert in  sea-life  could  have  said  all  that  the  apostle  said 
when  he  came  forth  to  quiet  the  sailors  in  the  midst  of 


304  THE   TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

Paul  in  the  ship.  Plague  in  Ireland. 

a  shipwreck.  The  force  of  his  counsel  lay  not  so  much 
in  the  prudence  of  what  he  suggested,  as  in  the  expe- 
rience which  Avas  embodied  in  it  —  that  "long  absti- 
nence "  in  which  he  had  received  his  vision.  One  mys- 
terious but  remembered  hour  there  was  which  gave  his 
speech  all  its  efficiency.  "And  now  I  exhort  you  to  be 
of  good  cheer :  for  there  shall  be  no  loss  of  any  man's 
life  among  you,  but  of  the  ship.  For  there  stood  by 
me  this  night  the  angel  of  God,  whose  I  am,  and  whom 
I  serve,  saying,  Fear  not,  Paul ;  thou  must  be  brought 
before  Caesar :  and,  lo,  God  had  given  thee  all  them 
that  sail  with  thee.  Wherefore,  sirs,  be  of  good  cheer ; 
for  I  believe  God,  that  it  shall  be  even  as  it  was  told 
me."  It  is  just  this,  Jus^  this,  which  is  the  element  of 
power  in  any  counsel.  The  angel  of  experience  is  sent 
to  one,  and  then  he  is  ready  to  say,  "  I  believe  God  !  " 

4.  We  learn  the  secret  of  all  success,  and  the  explana- 
tion of  all  failure.  It  would  seem  at  first  sight  that 
truth  is  efficient  in  itself  ;  that  the  gospel  sword  has  an 
inherent  thrust,  no  matter  who  wields  it ;  and  that  all 
which  needs  to  be  done  is  merely  to  bring  it  in  contact 
with  human  necessity.  But  now  we  understand  that 
first  it  must  pass  through  the  teacher's  experience  before 
it  can  be  expected  vitally  to  influence  those  who  are 
taught.  He  who  fails,  lacks  in  experience ;  he  who 
grows  in  it,  succeeds  ;  that  is,  he  who  teaches  another 
teaches  also  himself. 

When  the  plague  was  raging  in  Ireland,  the  priests 
gave  out  that  if  any  man  would  take  from  his  own  fire 


THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT.  305 

Calvin's  seal-motto.  Palestine  relics. 

a  piece  of  burning  peat  and  light  his  neighbor's  fire  with 
it,  he  would  deliver  the  family  from  an  attack  of  the 
disease.  The  whole  region  was  instantly  alive  with 
brands  passing  to  and  fro.  Oh  !  if  superstition  could 
do  this  much,  ought  not  zeal  to  do  more  ?  But  the 
kindling  was  to  come  from  one's  own  hearthstone  then  ; 
and  the  kindling  must  come  from  one's  own  heart  now. 
Calvin's  seal-motto  was  a  hand  holding  a  heart  on  fire, 
with  the  legend,  *'  I  give  thee  all,  I  keep  back  noth- 
ing !  "  What  we  need  beyond  every  other  earthly  need 
is,  to  have  our  entire  level  of  Christian  experience  lifted. 
We  are  too  busy  about  appliances  and  instruments  and 
places  and  theories. 

My  fellow-workers,  suffer  me  one  word.  Twice  in 
my  middle  life  I  have  been  at  the  ends  of  the  earth. 
This  hand  that  writes  to  you  has  plucked  olive  leaves 
from  the  old  tree  in  Gethsemane.  I  have  a  piece  of  a 
pyramid  that  I  brought  away  from  Egypt.  On  my  table 
lies  a  canteen  of  water  which  I  dipped  from  the  Jor- 
dan. Alas  !  how  little  use  I  can  make  of  these  now  !  I 
showed  them  to  our  Sunday-school  many  weeks  ago, 
and  that  is  about  all  I  can  do  with  them.  And  lierc  I 
am  back  on  the  old  ground  again,  facing  my  task.  All  I 
have  really  to  work  with,  I  find,  is  my  experience  of  the 
Saviour's  love.  And  that  is  the  result,  not  of  my  jour- 
neys, but  of  my  prayers. 

5.  We  learn  the  last  essential  of  preparation  for  teach- 
ing. We  must  have  the  presence  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 
You  see  this  most  evidently  in  the  case  of  the  apostle 


3o6  THE  TEACHER  TAUGHT. 

Chrysostom's  picture  of  Paul.  Paul  at  Lystra. 

who  penned  our  text.  ''  Thus,"  says  Chrysostom,  **  this 
man,  three  cubits  high,  became  tall  enough  to  touch 
the  third  heavens."  They  called  him  Paullus,  because 
he  was  little.  He  had  a  distemper  in  his  sight.  His 
bodily  presence  was  said  to  be  weak,  and  his  speech 
contemptible. 

But  no  man  ever  equaled  him  in  power  as  a  religious 
teacher.  He  held  up  before  the  world  the  most  unwel- 
come and  despised  truth  of  the  new  gospel.  He  turned 
it  round  and  round  in  his  hand,  as  his  own  soul  rose  to 
a  full  comprehension  of  its  magnitude.  He  bound  to  it 
all  his  learning  ;  he  w^reathed  around  it  poetry  and  phi- 
losophy ;  he  warmed  it  with  all  his  fiery  ardor  of  temper- 
ament ;  until,  in  the  supernatural  rush  of  his  eloquence, 
his  diminutive  body  was  forgotten,  his  bent  form  was 
straightened,  his  weak  eyes  were  glowing,  his  hesitant 
utterance  became  fluent ;  and  Saul  of  Tarsus,  with  all  his 
passions  and  all  his  disabilities  and  all  his  sins,  was  lost 
in  the  inspiration  of  Paul,  the  ambassador  of  the  living 
God  !  No  wonder  that  the  simple-minded  multitude  of 
Lystra  thought  he  was  a  deity,  and  brought  forth  gar- 
lands and  oxen  to  sacrifice,  saying,  in  the  speech  of  Ly- 
caonia,  "  The  gods  be  come  down  to  us  in  the  likeness 
of  men  !  " 

Oh  !  for  a  baptism  of  the  Spirit  on  us  and  on  our  chil- 
dren, that  should  fill  us  with  a  like  experience,  and  in- 
sure for  us  a  like  success  ! 


XXVIL 

FOUR   PILLARS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 

And  when  James,  Cephas,  and  John,  who  seemed  to  be  pil- 
lars, PERCEIVED  THE  GRACE  THAT  WAS  GIVEN  UNTO  ME,  THEY 
GAVE  TO  ME  AND  BARNABAS  THE  RIGHT  HANDS  OF  FELLOWSHIP  ; 
THAT  WE  SHOULD  GO  UNTO  THE  HEATHEN,  AND  THEY  UNTO 
THE  CIRCUMCISION.  —  Galatiatis  2  :  9. 

Our  studies  have  led  us  along  over  the  lives  and  liter- 
ary work  of  four  apostles,  to  whose  joint  labors  we  owe 
the  larger  part  of  the  New  Testament.  One  of  them, 
Paul,  when  writing  to  the  Galatians,  says  that  James, 
Peter,  and  John  **  seemed  to  be  pillars  "  in  the  church 
at  Jerusalem.  Either  of  them  might  afterward  have 
made  the  made  remark  of  him.  What  he  meant  was 
most  felicitously  conveyed  under  such  a  figure.  And 
we  should  not  be  far  out  of  the  way  if  we  grouped  to- 
gether all  these  men  whose  writings  we  have  been  study- 
ing, and  called  them  *'  pillars  "  for  the  sake  of  the  sup- 
port they  offered,  and  the  adornment  they  gave,  in  the 
grand  edifice  of  the  Christian  temple. 

L  Paul  comes  first  in  the  order.  He  wrote  thirteen 
of  the  epistles,  perhaps  fourteen  :  Hebrews  is  in  discus- 
sion still. 

We  can  tell  an  artist  by  his  style  ;  we  could  recognize 
the  nature  and  characteristics  of  this  great  man  by  these 
letters  very  readily  if  we  had  nothing  else.     But  the  his- 


308  FOUR   PILLARS   OF   THE   CHURCH. 

The  apostle  Paul,  The  apostle  James. 

tory  in  the  Acts  is  full  of  graphic  incidents  in  his  per- 
sonal career  likewise  ;  and  we  have  learned  to  know  this 
small-bodied,  large-minded  apostle  quite  thoroughly. 
No  writer  has  ever  lived  v/ho  more  distinctly  impressed 
himself  on  his  books.  *'  Style  is  the  man."  We  are 
actually  familiar  v/ith  a  personality  so  bold  and  distin- 
guishable from  the  very  beginning. 

He  had  been  in  early  life  a  bigoted  Pharisee.  Pas- 
sionate and  revengeful,  threatenings  and  slaughter  were 
so  natural  to  him,  while  he  was  persecuting  the  church 
of  Christ,  that  the  inspired  historian  uses  a  violent  fig- 
ure of  speech  to  say  he  w^as  '*  breathing  them  out."  But 
when  he  became  a  preacher  of  the  new  faith,  his  whole 
demeanor  changed.  Paul  was,  without  doubt,  the  most 
thoroughly  converted  man  whose  biography  is  recorded 
in  the  Bible. 

J  I.  Next  in  order  we  entered  upon  the  study  of  one 
lesson  from  the  epistle  of  James. 

This  single  letter  is  all  we  have  from  his  pen  ;  but  a 
most  striking  composition  it  is.  Taken  alone,  and  just 
as  it  stands,  it  seems  a  little  cold  and  unspiritual.  It  in- 
sists pertinaciously  and  punctiliously  upon  fidelity  in  the 
minor  moralities.  But  few  would  agree  with  the  impet- 
uous Martin  Luther  in  pronouncing  it  *'an  epistle  of 
straw."     That  is  going  too  far. 

Indeed,  the  more  one  studies  the  epistle  in  the  full 
light  of  the  gospel,  the  more  clearly  he  perceives  that  a 
strong,  rugged  teacher  was  earnestly  contending  for  con- 
sistency in  behavior  up  to  the  entire  limit  of  a  man's  in- 


FOUR  PILLARS  OF  THE  CHURCH.  309 

Genuine  piety.  Simon  Peter. 

formation,  before  he  should  waste  himself  in  enthusias- 
tic gushing  after  that  which  was  quite  beyond  his  attain- 
ments. This  apostle  rightly  bore  the  name  of  **  James 
the  Just."  He  is  supposed  to  have  been  a  close  relative 
of  our  Lord  himself ;  some  say  he  was  his  brother.  A 
calm,  practical  common-sense  runs  through  all  he  says. 
He  was  intolerant  of  mere  pretension.  He  was  utterly 
set  against  sham.  You  may  not  like  his  somewhat  stern 
dealing  ;  but  you  are  certain  there  is  no  veneering  upon 
his  speech.  He  is  undoubtedly  genuine,  to  say  the 
least  of  him.  One  can  rest  upon  his  candor,  even  if  he  is 
not  won  by  his  gentleness  of  zeal.  And  while  people  are 
fretted  by  such  plainness,  it  remains  indisputably  true 
that  if  everybody  would  do  as  James  says  he  ought  to 
do,  everybody  would  be  a  better  and  a  happier  man. 

HI.  Simon  Peter  then  met  us  on  the  threshold  of  his 
two  letters  like  a  welcome  old  friend. 

There  seems  an  indescribable  pathos  in  all  the  senti- 
ments of  this  singular  apostle.  We  see  his  modesty  in 
giving  counsel ;  he  is  "  also  an  elder ; "  nothing  more. 
But  no  man  ever  worked  out  his  conclusions  through  a 
deep  experience  more  absolutely  than  he  did.  He  knew 
of  what  he  wrote. 

He  feels  that  his  antecedents  are  somewhat  against 
him.  His  whole  life  has  been  full  of  conflict.  It  has 
cost  him  much  to  achieve  even  a  little  headway  in  grace. 
Impulsive  and  inconsistent,  vacillating  and  irresolute, 
but  affectionate  and  tender-hearted  in  every  action,  he, 
like  Paul,  had  to  labor  to  keep  his  body  under,  lest  he 


3IO  FOUR  PILLARS   OF  THE   CHURCH. 

Luther's  opinion  of  Peter.  The  apostle  John. 

should  become  a  castaway.  Once  he  went  so  far  ahead 
of  Jesus  in  an  unauthorized  defence  of  him  that  our 
Lord  had  to  work  a  miracle  to  retrieve  the  mistake. 
And  right  after  that,  he  followed  Jesus  so  far  off  that  a 
maid-servant  taunted  him  into  swearing  to  a  lie  of  de- 
nial. All  the  time,  this  man  draws  us  to  him ;  he  is  so 
loving  and  so  artless.  He  is  the  most  Jiuman  man  in  the 
Bible.  '^  Whenever  I  look  at  Simon  Peter,"  says  the 
enthusiastic  Luther,  "  my  very  heart  leaps  for  joy.  If  I 
could  paint  a  portrait  of  this  apostle,  I  would  paint  on 
every  hair  of  his  head — '  I  believe  in  the  forgiveness  of 
sin  ! ' " 

IV.  After  this,  John  furnished  us  with  matter  for  nine 
of  the  twenty-five  lessons. 

No  inspired  writer  could  more  fitly  have  crowned  our 
feast  of  fat  things.  This  old  and  lonely,  but  cheerful 
and  gentle  man,  gave  us  the  benefit  of  visions  passing 
mortal  conception.  If  we  had  been  asked  to  name  the 
apostle  most  likely  to  receive  such  extraordinary  favor, 
and  most  fitted  to  use  it  for  edification  in  the  churches, 
I  think  we  should  all  h?.ve  pointed  out  the  exact  one 
whom  the  Lord  cliose.  It  is  not  wise  to  speak  of  John, 
as  many  do,  as  an  affectionate  and  effeminate,  a  long- 
haired, white-faced  weakling,  all  gush,  and  all  mysti- 
cism and  softness.  He  was  called  a  **  Son  of  Thunder" 
because  he  was  so  full  of  force  ;  a  being  of  unmistaka- 
ble fervor  of  energy  and  fire  of  disposition.  He  was  a 
man,  however,  of  deep  spiritual  penetration,  and  most 
likely  went  farther  into  the   experimental  meaning  of 


FOUR   PILLARS   OF  THE   CIIURCIL  311 

Diversity  of  gifts.  "Stir  up  "  gifts. 

what  his  divine  Master  revealed  than  any  other  one  of 
the  twelve  followers  he  selected. 

Thus,  then,  these  four  pillars  of  the  church  stand  be- 
fore us  for  our  contemplation.  Some  thoughts  for  a 
review  may  possibly  be  suggested  by  the  picture. 

1.  For  example,  we  see  that  the  widest  diversity  of 
gifts  can  be  employed  to  advantage  in  winning  souls  to 
Christ. 

It  would  hardly  be  possible  to  sketch  four  characters 
differing  more  in  essential  particulars  than  these  apos- 
tles. Paul  was  the  theologian  of  the  early  church. 
Peter  had  an  undeniable  headship  in  organization.  But 
James  brought  his  cool  temperament  into  service  in  de- 
cisions involving  difficult  points  of  casuistry,  while  John 
was  of  all  the  best  calculated  to  labor  for  spiritual  emi- 
nence in  the  converts.  Now  when  results  are  before  us, 
no  one  could  venture  to  pronounce  which  was  the  most 
useful  in  the  grand  work  Christ  gave  them  all  to  do. 
Each  was  the  best  for  his  own  work.  The  rule  for  our- 
selves would  be  found  in  Paul's  advice  to  Timothy.  He 
gives  this  in  two  forms  :  "  Neglect  not  the  gift  that  is 
in  thee  ; "  and  then  again  :  "  Stir  up  the  gift  of  God 
which  is  in  thee."  We  must  take  it  for  granted  that  the 
Lord  never  chose  any  one  for  work  without  bestowing 
on  him  some  sort  of  a  gif^  for  practical  use.  This  he  is 
to  "  stir  up,"  and  this  he  must  not  *'  neglect." 

2.  So  this  would  suggest  a  second  lesson  :  failure  in 
one  particular  field  or  sphere  of  action  does  not  preclude 
great  after  success  in  another  for  the  same  man. 


312  FOUR   PILLARS   OF   THE    CHURCH. 

Early  failure.  Subsequent  success. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Paul  found  poor  welcome 
in  the  beginning  of  his  ministry.  His  antecedents,  like 
Peter's,  were  against  him.  He  had  been  lately  too  vio- 
lent in  his  persecution  of  the  saints.  The  members  of 
the  new  churches  stood  aloof:  **And  when  Saul  was 
come  to  Jerusalem,  he  assayed  to  join  himself  to  the 
disciples :  but  they  were  all  afraid  of  him,  and  believed 
not  that  he  was  a  disciple.  But  Barnabas  took  him, 
and  brought  him  to  the  apostles,  and  declared  unto  them 
how  he  had  seen  the  Lord  in  the  way,  and  that  he  had 
spoken  to  him,  and  how  he  had  preached  boldly  at 
Damascus  in  the  name  of  Jesus.  And  he  was  with  them 
coming  in  and  going  out  at  Jerusalem." 

Still,  it  was  evident  that  he  would  be  always  under 
suspicion  in  the  capital  where  Stephen  had  been  stoned, 
and  wherever  he  should  attempt  to  w^ork  among  the 
Jews.  It  was  expedient  for  him  to  go  away  at  once 
among  strangers.  His  faithful  friend  clung  to  him  in 
his  present  fortunes,  and  bore  him  company.  Just  here 
the  verse  we  are  studying  now  comes  in  :  *'And  when 
James,  Cephas,  and  John,  w^ho  seemed  to  be  pillars, 
perceived  the  grace  that  was  given  unto  me,  they  gave 
to  me  and  Barnabas  the  right  hands  of  fellowship  ;  that 
w^e  should  go  unto  the  heathen,  and  they  unto  the  cir- 
cumcision." Thus  it  was  that  Paul  became-a  preacher 
to  the  heathen  far  from  all  his  early  and  patriotic  asso- 
ciations. As  a  home  missionary  he  was  a  failure.  The 
Lord  had  other  work  for  him  to  do. 

It  is  not  every  Christian's  duty  to  enter  the  ministry, 


FOUR  PILLARS   OF   THE   CHURCH.  313 

Following  Providence.  Individualities  preserved. 


or  superintend  a  mission-school.  He  may  have  a  higher 
aptitude  for  something  else.  It  is  better  to  let  Provi- 
dence decide  without  any  setting  of  our  hearts  upon  a 
favorite  work.  ''  Some  people,"  so  I  once  heard  a 
preacher  say,  ''follow  Providence  as  a  man  follows  a 
wheelbarrow,  pushing  it  on  before  him."  Most  of  us 
have  known  a  few  Christians  who  fixed  their  wills  on 
succeeding  in  enterprises  which  w^e  honestly  believed 
were  never  designed  for  them.  By  and  by,  the  Lord 
puts  all  this  right,  and  they  find  their  real  calling.  So 
it  is  well  for  us  all  never  to  be  discouraged  ;  God's 
goodness  will  locate  our  lives  in  his  own  chosen 
time. 

3.  Then  once  more  :  we  might  learn  that  the  individ- 
ualities of  personal  character  are  in  no  wise  destroyed 
by  the  new  life  under  the  gospel. 

Paul,  after  his  conversion,  was  just  as  earnest  and 
driving  as  before.  James  carried  his  carefulness  as  a 
Pharisee  into  his  demeanor  as  a  Christian.  Peter  left 
his  boats  and  tackle  to  become  a  skilful  fisher  of  men, 
with  the  same  adroitness  and  patient  business  absorption 
put  into  his  fresh  profession.  So  John  was.  affectionate 
to  Jesus'  mother,  because  he  had  grown  up  affectionate 
to  his  own. 

Naturalness  is  one  of  the  best  evidences  of  grace,  for 
it  excludes  assumption  and  hypocrisy.  No  one  will 
ever  succeed  in  making  himself  better  by  making  him- 
self over  into  another  man's  likeness.  The  usual  failure 
in  endeavors  at  imitation  is  owing  to  the  fact  that  human 
14 


314  FOUR  PILLARS  OF  THE  CHURCH. 

Imitation  is  hurtful.  Paul's  eloquence. 

perversity  almost  always  selects  striking  peculiarities  in 
a  pattern,  and  then  is  unconscious  of  having  left  out  the 
great  excellences  which  gave  them  their  power.  So  the 
result  is  only  an  oddity. 

4.  In  the  fourth  place,  we  see  that  true  religion  in  the 
heart  is  a  powerful  helper  in  intellectual  advancement. 

The  history  of  all  these  four  men  affords  an  illustra- 
tion of  the  Scripture  text :  "  The  entrance  of  thy  words 
giveth  light ;  it  giveth  understanding  unto  the  simple." 
We  all  know  how  Simon  Peter  was  reared.  How  is  it 
possible  that  he  could  reach  literary  attainments  suffi- 
cient to  enable  him  to  write  two  such  epistles  as  those 
which  bear  his  name  ?  Scholars  tell  us  they  are  com- 
posed in  the  finest  Greek  in  the  New"  Testament.  The 
explanation  is  easy.  He  had  been  for  many  years  at 
school  to  Christ. 

Take  Paul  also  :  he  was  taught  well  at  the  feet  of 
Gamaliel,  no  doubt  ;  but  his  excellences  are  marvelous 
both  as  a  polemic  and  as  a  rhetorician.  Whenever  he 
spoke  or  wrote,  he  made  his  message  sound  in  the  ears 
of  men  with  the  loftiness  of  Isaiah,  the  devotion  of 
David,  the  vehemence  of  Ezekiel,  and  over  and  above 
these  with  a  stroke  and  a  ring  that  was  his  own,  which, 
while  it  comprehended  them  all,  transcended  them  all, 
and  gave  to  his  address  a  living  energy^  that  had  no 
equal.  **  If  any  man  will  do  my  will,"  said  Jesus  Christ, 
''he  shall  know  of  the  doctrine."  Obedience  is  an  in- 
strument in  grace. 

5.  Again,  we  can  learn  from  these  men's  biographies 


FOUR   PILLARS   OF  THE   CHURCH.  315 

Personal  weaknesses.  The  ideal  Christian, 

and  writings  that  the  very  best  Christian  excellences 
may  be,  unfortunately,  marred  by  personal  weaknesses. 

For  every  one  of  them  was  faulty  enough  to  make 
some  notable  mistake,  which  has  been  handed  down  ta 
us  in  the  imperishable  record.  Paul  quarreled  sadly 
with  Barnabas  about  Mark.  James  refused  to  welcome 
Paul  at  Jerusalem.  John  and  James  both  suffered  their 
injudicious  mother  to  ask  Jesus  for  pre-eminence  for 
them  ;  and  both  of  them  wanted  to  have  fire  come  down 
from  heaven  to  consume  a  whole  village  at  once,  because 
the  people  behaved  badly.  To  say  nothing  of  Peter's 
denial,  we  must  remember  that  on  one  occasion  he  dis- 
simulated about  eating  with  the  Gentiles,  so  that  Paul 
withstood  him  to  the  face  as  one  to  be  blamed. 

Most  unpleasant  it  is  to  rehearse  such  facts.  The 
least  we  can  do  is  to  beware  of  any  servile  following  of 
mere  men.  Hero-worship  is  out  of  place  among  the 
human  beings  of  the  Bible.  *'Let  no  man  glory  in 
men."  And  as  for  ourselves,  we  may  remember  this: 
"  Let  him  that  thinketh  he  standeth,  take  heed  lest  he 
fall." 

6.  Just  a  suggestion  now,  which  may  or  may  not  be 
called  a  lesson.  Perhaps  the  ideal  Christian  might  be 
made  up  of  the  best  excellences  in  all. 

Put  Paul's  orthodoxy  in  doctrine  alongside  of  James's 
morality  in  behavior  ;  put  Peter's  activity  in  impulse 
with  John's  extensive  experience  ;  join  all  these  into 
one  man.  He  might  not  be  the  coming  man  of  the 
world,  but  he  would  be  a  more  efficient  man  than  some 


3l6  FOUR  PILLARS  OF  THE   CHURCH. 

Good  in  every  Christian.  "Jesus  only." 

who  talk  about  such  an  one,  and  far  beyond  the  ordinary- 
standard  as  things  go.  We  might  all  study  divinity  with 
Paul,  casuistry  with  James,  zeal  with  Peter,  and  spirit- 
uality with  John  ;  it  is  likely  we  should  gain  much  in 
every  respect.  So,  practically,  we  might  watch  our 
neighbors,  not  to  criticise  them  ungenerously,  but  to 
know  their  strong  points  with  kind,  charitable  eyes,  and 
this  to  some  profit  all  the  time.  There  is  good  in  every- 
body who  is  a  child  of  God. 

7.  Finally,  we  cannot  fail  to  learn,  as  the  sweetest  and 
best  lesson  of  all,  that  the  truest  Christians  are  those 
who  are  most  like  their  Leader,  and  most  loyal  to  him 
as  supreme. 

It  is  affecting  to  hear  the  denying,  dissimulating  Peter 
say,  near  the  close  of  his  troubled  life,  as  his  best  coun- 
sel:  "  For  even  hereunto  were  ye  called  :  because  Christ 
also  suffered  for  us,  leaving  us  an  example,  that  ye  should 
follow  his  steps  :  who  did  no  sin,  neither  was  guile  found 
in  his  mouth."  And  Paul  puts  the  same  thing  into  yet 
plainer  words :  ''Be  ye  followers  of  me,  even  as  I  also 
am  of  Christ."  We  may  take  men  in  the  line  of  the 
Master,  if  our  poor  life  needs  intervening  steps.  But 
it  would  be  well  to  forget  them  utterly,  when  we  come 
near  enough  to  catch  glimpses  of  the  Lord.  Then, 
when  we  lift  up  our  eyes,  we  shall  see  **  Jesus  only." 


